Question: I almost have all my questions answered in my first question. one left. I have to take narcotic painkillers because of my back & leg pain. the problem is almost all of them make me itch terribly so that the pain is as bad as the itching . I've got it narrowed down to 2 drugs that do not cause you to have "the itch". fentanyl & tramadol are synthetic opioid drugs not derived from opium and therefore do not cause the "itch". my question is no one has commented on the last drug: Demerol. Could you please on Demerol. is it still considered a safe drug and is it still prescribed? thank you.

thank you sir for replying. Benadryl does nothing for me, it doesn't touch it. I took 4 at a time. cortisone would be the only antidote , but the doctor wasn't interested and frankly taking one drug to counteract another I do not believe is good medicine. in addition to my bulging disks, my L5 disk is almost gone. I am not interested in lyrica & Neurontin, etc., been there, done that.
I also have idiopathic edema in both legs and feet that has recently flared to the point where it resembles lymphedema and am presently at clinic with PT. on top of that I have plantar fasciitis in both feet. plus, since I stopped the injection of steroids (last one 11/18), I am long overdue, so know my dull ache is coming back in my lower back and both my legs. OTHER THAN THAT, EVERYTHING IS GREAT. so, if my doctor can give me some relief with a synthetic opioid like drug (tramadol) and it doesn't make me itch, i'll be first in line.