is versed (an amnesiac medication) evil?

[unblock]

versed is often given patients undergoing medical procedures that do not require general anaesthesia. versed has most of the properties of anaesthesia, except that (at normal doses) does not cause unconsciousness. it is, however, very effective at blocking the transfer of memories from short-term to long-term.

in other words, you will feel almost everything the doctor is doing to you, will only minimal pain reduction; however, you will have no memory of it after a few minutes.

personally, i feel this is an evil medication, inspired by lawyers seeking to avoid damaging testimony. yes, i am fully aware it is far safer than general anaesthesia. however, i find it repugnant that, the war on drugs being what it is, they find this a wonderful alternative to actual painkillers.

i have personally witnessed (back when i was an emt-in-training) a doctor take about 5-7 minutes setting a severe radius/ulna (forearm) fracture on a poor little 8 year old who was screaming his head off. i mean, i thought his face was going to explode. his parents were right there, cringing.

where did they get the idea that an inhuman level of pain is fine, just so long as you can't effectively testify about it later?

[Feanorcurufinwe]

1. Evil? I don't know

Bizarre? yes. It definitely works. When they gave it to my ex-wife, she really could not remember what happened from one moment to the next.


I think there is a medical reason for it, though, sometimes I would imagine that it would be important for the patient to be able to provide the feedback that the ability to feel pain provides during the procedure, without the long-term distress.

[unblock]

4. yes, there ARE reasons where other medications are contraindicated

if someone is in respiratory distress, you don't give them narcotics, e.g., which further depresses breathing. thus, no narcotic painkillers for a hemopneumothorax, that procedure where they stick a tube in your chest to get rid of air and/or blood trapped around the lung.

also, general anaesthesia becomes increasingly risky with age. fine.

what i'm talking about is the widespread use of versed when traditional alternatives are not contraindicated, e.g., this 8 year old kid screaming his head off was clearly and loudly BREATHING JUST FINE, so why no narcotic painkillers for him?

[benburch]

2. As somebody who has been in extreme pain..

you don't remember the pain very well anyway. If you don't go into shock from it, the pain has no lasting effect.

[noonwitch]

5. Other than the screams the doctors and nurses would still be hearing

I'm not a good patient, always.

[11 Bravo]

3. I can't remember.

n/t

[NeonLX]

6. From personal experience...

It does the trick. They had to shove a chest tube into me about seven years ago because of a collapsed lung. My wife was in the room when they did it. They administered the versid then shoved the damned tube through my chest wall. She says I screamed to high heaven for about a minute (and I'm a pretty stoic guy normally). My only memory of that event is "waking up" a few minutes later, wondering if they had done the deed yet and then realizing my ribcage hurt. No memory of the actual procedure at all.

[benburch]

7. How long...

...before this becomes a rape drug? :(

[On the Road]

8. Is it Evil? No, It's "Well"

"Well-versed," that is.

What kind of silly names are they giving to drugs these days?

[unblock]

9. it's pronouced "ver-SED"

for whatever that's worth....