Bowen On Toradol: 'Masks A Lot Of Pain'
(WSCR) Since Brian Urlacher's interview with HBO's "Real Sports," much has been said about the drug Toradol.
Apparently, the use of the Toradol, which provides short-term management of moderate to severe pain, around the league is not uncommon.
"I took Toradol for two straight seasons every week after I blew my knee out," former NFL defensive back Matt Bowen told The Mully and Hanley Show. "I know it happens. In the Redskins locker room, there was a line. There was a line to see our team doctor and get a shot.
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"I don't know if I needed it after awhile, but you come to a point where you go into a game, and if you've had an injury, and I had that blown ACL, I figured it was going to hurt a lot during the game, so I went and took it anyways. The worst part about it is when you finally get home after the game. You get home and you want to drink a beer or something and you stand up and you're like, 'Oh my gosh, I'm really hurting now.' When that stuff wears off, you realize how much it can mask the pain."
Though the use of Toradol can be linked to kidney failure and gastrointestinal bleeding, Bowen said team doctors did not discuss the negative ramifications of using such a drug.
"No, they just gave it to you," Bowen said. "They didn't care.
"It wasn't a direct injection like they stick it in your knee or anything. It was like getting a penicillin shot. That's what it's like. That's what it feels like. The effects are pretty strong. It masks a lot of pain. You get through a lot of stuff with taking a Toradol shot."
Bowen, who played seven season with four different teams in the NFL, said players don't even think of the consequences, they just want to play football.
"I understand what Brian was saying," he said. "You just keep doing it and keep doing it. You don't think about the long-term effects."
