Thebacon is most commonly taken orally as an elixir, tablet, or capsule, although rectal and subcutaneous administration has the same advantages with hydrocodone as would taking a tablet, powder, or a liquid concentrate buccally or sublingually. Like all of its chemical relatives in this class (codeine-based semi-synthetic narcotic antitussives), thebacon exerts its analgesic effect and a large part of its antitussive and antiperistaltic action as a prodrug for stronger and/or longer-lasting opioids, primarily hydromorphone, which is formed in the liver by the cytochrome P450 2D6 (CYP2D6) enzyme pathway as well as acetylmorphone. As a result, the effectiveness of a given dose of thebacon will vary amongst patients, and some food and drugs can affect various parts of the liberation, absorption, distribution, metabolism and elimination profile, and therefore a variable proportion of the potency of thebacon. Thebacon can be said to be the 6-monoacetylmorphine analog of hydrocodone, and/or the 6-acetylmorphone analog of codeine. It is also a close structural relative of 3,14-diacetyloxymorphone.
