What medication is Dr. House addicted to in House M.D.?

Dr. Gregory House is addicted to Vicodin in House M.D., using the opioid painkiller to manage chronic leg pain.

House’s dependence is one of the series’ major continuing storylines. His pain began after an infarction in the quadriceps muscle of his right leg, which caused permanent damage and left him with a limp.

Vicodin is a brand name for a combination of hydrocodone and paracetamol, also called acetaminophen. The show repeatedly depicts the professional, personal, and legal consequences of House’s use, rather than treating it merely as a character quirk.

House sometimes attempts rehabilitation or abstinence, but relapses become part of several later plots. The medication is therefore closely associated with the character, although it is not his medical specialty or a diagnosis.