Oxynorm 20mg should be taken at 4-6 hourly intervals. The dosage is dependent on the severity of the pain, and the patient’s previous history of analgesic requirements. Increasing severity of pain will require an increased dosage of OxyNorm capsules. The correct dosage for any individual patient is that which controls the pain and is well tolerated throughout the dosing period. Patients should be titrated to pain relief unless unmanageable adverse drug reactions prevent this. The usual starting dose for opioid naive patients or patients presenting with severe pain uncontrolled by weaker opioids is 5 mg, 4-6 hourly. The dose should then be carefully titrated, as frequently as once a day if necessary, to achieve pain relief. The majority of patients will not require a daily dose greater than 400 mg. However, a few patients may require higher doses. Conversion from oral morphine: Patients receiving oral morphine before Oxynorm 20mg therapy should have their daily dose based on the following ratio: 10 mg of oral oxycodone is equivalent to 20 mg of oral morphine. It must be emphasised that this is a guide to the dose of Oxynorm 20mg capsules required. Inter-patient variability requires that each patient is carefully titrated to the appropriate dose.