Anecdotal, but my subjective experience and that of my family, is that acetaminophen is worthless for pain management. Given that is poses an active risk to liver function, I can't justify its use at all. It's far too dangerous to be legal over the counter.
Interesting that it is included at high doses in prescription painkillers - no medical function, just a rather deadly deterrent to anyone seeking opiates.
So when making medical decisions you should... not consider empirical evidence? n=1 is good enough when n is the only subject in question.
My n=1 experience with "tylenol" is that, even carefully prescribed, the use of acetaminophen can cause very severe problems when combined with pre-existing conditions and other medications.
No one told me that shit until I was in the ER 4 times.
Knowing how toxic it is, how potentially harmful the drug interactions can be, and how little evidence exists for its efficacy as a generic painkiller, I have no qualms saying that acetaminophen should be a highly regulated drug - Available to anyone who needs it per a doctors order certainly, but removed from all "consumer" products.
It depends on the types and intensity of the pain. Annoying/sleep-interrupting pains: yes, severe pains: no. For moderately-severe pain, either use acetaminophen + ibuprofen + famotidine if you know the source for certain, or go to the ER. Actual, short-term severe pain requires a prescription medication such as an opiate.
Interesting that it is included at high doses in prescription painkillers - no medical function, just a rather deadly deterrent to anyone seeking opiates.