Postoperative analgesia with controlled-release morphine sulphate: comparison with intramuscular morphine.

Fifty patients undergoing hysterectomy or cholecystectomy took part in a trail of postoperative analgesia provided by either intramuscular morphine or controlled-release morphine sulphate tablets orally. Respiratory function and plasma catecholamine concentrations were measured after operation and pain was assessed by using a linear analogue scoring method. Controlled-release morphine sulphate produced comparable pain relief with that of intramuscular morphine, and depression of respiratory function after operation was similar with the two analgesic regimens. The mean total dose of drug per patient given over 48 h to patients undergoing hysterectomy was 115 mg for morphine sulphate and 53 mg for morphine. Patients undergoing cholecystectomy received 130 mg morphine sulphate or 76 mg morphine. There was more sedation after operation in those patients undergoing hysterectomy who received morphine sulphate tablets. Morphine sulphate tablets produced satisfactory postoperative analgesia compared with intramuscular morphine: both regimens were acceptable to the patients.

[1]  B. Cotton,et al.  Pain relief after abdominal surgery--a comparison of i.m. morphine, sublingual buprenorphine and self-administered i.v. pethidine. , 1982, British journal of anaesthesia.

[2]  G. Hanks,et al.  Controlled-release morphine tablets. A double-blind trial in dental surgery patients. , 1981, British journal of anaesthesia.

[3]  M. Morgan,et al.  EXTRADURAL OPIOIDS FOR POSTOPERATIVE ANALGESIA A double-blind comparison of pethidine, fentanyl and morphine , 1981 .

[4]  S. Reiz,et al.  Epidural Morphine for Postoperative Pain Relief , 1981, Acta anaesthesiologica Scandinavica.

[5]  T. Stanley,et al.  Plasma Catecholamine and Cortisol Responses to Fentanyl–Oxygen Anesthesia for Coronary-artery Operations , 1980 .

[6]  P. Bromage,et al.  Epidural Narcotics for Postoperative Analgesia , 1980, Anesthesia and analgesia.

[7]  F. Black,et al.  Controlled release morphine sulphate tablets--a study in normal volunteers. , 1980, British journal of clinical pharmacology.

[8]  W. White,et al.  Postoperative analgesia: a comparison of intravenous on-demand fentanyl with epidural bupivacaine. , 1979, British medical journal.

[9]  E. Fry.  Continuous narcotic infusions for relief of postoperative pain. , 1979, British medical journal.

[10]  J. Church.  Continuous narcotic infusions for relief of postoperative pain. , 1979, British medical journal.

[11]  M Rosen,et al.  The reliability of a linear analogue for evaluating pain , 1976, Anaesthesia.

[12]  J. Hempstead,et al.  The disposition of morphine in surgical patients , 1975 .

[13]  I. Chanarin,et al.  Letter: Relief of intractable pruritus in polycythaemia rubra vera with cholestyramine. , 1975, British journal of haematology.

[14]  L. Wasserman,et al.  A study of histamine in myeloproliferative disease. , 1966, Blood.

[15]  Practical Dermatology , 1941 .

[16]  B. Berkowitz.  The Relationship of Pharmacokinetics to Pharmacological Activity: Morphine, Methadone and Naloxone , 1976, Clinical pharmacokinetics.

[17]  I. Sneddon,et al.  The Significance of Low Serum Iron Levels in the Causation of Itching , 1968 .