Morphine via Nebulizer for Pain Relief

The same nebulizers used by asthma patients to open constricted airways are now being used by chest surgery and trauma patients for delivering pain medication that can be used easily at home by patients or administered by their caregivers, allowing the patients to leave the hospital sooner.

Nebulizers deliver a fine mist of morphine into a mask worn over the patient's mouth. As the patient breathes in, the mist enters the lungs where it is readily absorbed. The study found that morphine delivered by nebulization was just as effective as patient-controlled analgesia (PCA). The study also found that nebulized morphine reduced the risk of one of morphine's major negative side effects, respiratory depression.

Although no differences were found between the two groups with respect to blood pressure and oxygen levels in the blood, patients who received nebulized morphine had higher respiratory rates and lower sedation levels than the PCA morphine group.

"Although patients could already use PCA systems in home settings, the systems limit patients' mobility. Nebulizers' portability makes them an attractive alternative,” said Dr. Lennart Fagraeus, chair of anesthesiology at Christiana Care Health System (Newark, DE, USA). Dr. Fagraeus also noted that devices equipped with automatic lockout mechanisms to prevent accidental overdoses of morphine would be ideal to make the delivery system safe and practical for home use.