What is morphine? You will learn the answer to the question below. In addition, we will talk about why this drug is used, how it is used, etc.
What is morphine?
In its pure form, the drug "Morphine" is a crystalline white powder. By the way, "Morphine" is its obsolete name. It should be especially noted that the name of this substance came from the name of the Greek god Morpheus, who commanded dreams. Morphine is a medicine that is an opium alkaloid. It is made from dried poppy juice. In addition, such a substance can be found in herbs such as stefania, moon seed, sinomenium, etc.
Historical reference
What is morphine? This is a drug with painkillers, soothing and sleeping pills. A medicine made on the basis of such a substance was actively used in medical practice as early as 1805. Not a single hospital could do without him during the American Civil War. As a strong pain medication, it was administered to injured soldiers intravenously and intramuscularly after surgical interventions. This greatly facilitated their suffering. However, it should be noted that such a tool quickly became addictive. Soon, the condition the patient was exposed to after using the medication for a long time received the name “soldier's disease”.
As you know, at the beginning of the last century, morphine was used not only by the military, but also by doctors who, with the help of it, wanted to get rid of the feeling of fatigue.
Drug Release Form
The drug "Morphine" is available in the form of tablets of 0.01 g, 1% solution in ampoules and in a syringe tube of 1 ml.
Drug properties
Describing morphine (medicine), one can note its following features:
- This preparation is produced in the form of white needle crystals or a white crystalline powder, which slightly turns yellow or gray during storage.
- Such a tool is slowly soluble in water and sparingly soluble in alcohol. It is incompatible with alkalis. The prepared solution must be sterilized at 100 ° C for half an hour. Hydrochloric acid is added to stabilize it .
- The melting point of this drug is 254 ° C.
- The specific rotation of the solution is 2%.
- Flammable at 261 ° C.
- Self-ignition occurs at 349 ° C.
Pharmacodynamics
Morphine is a drug that is a member of a group of opioid analgesics. It causes euphoria, reduces pain symptoms, causes a feeling of peace of mind, improves mood, gives bright prospects, regardless of the real situation. It is these properties of this drug that contribute to the formation of physical and mental dependence.
In high doses, such a drug has a rather strong hypnotic effect. In addition, morphine inhibits all conditioned reflexes, causes miosis and reduces the excitability of the cough center. Increasing the tone of the muscles of the internal organs, it contributes to spasms of the sphincter of Oddi and bile ducts. In addition, this drug significantly weakens intestinal motility, but at the same time accelerates emptying and increases gastric motility.
Pharmacokinetics
Most often, morphine (anesthetic) is prescribed intravenously, subcutaneously and intramuscularly. However, rectal, oral, epidural or intrathecal use is also possible. Such a drug is absorbed quite quickly. About 20-40% of the drug binds to plasma proteins. The drug "Morphine" crosses the placenta and may cause respiratory failure in the fetus. It should also be noted that this tool is determined in breast milk.
With intramuscular administration, the effect of morphine develops after about 15-26 minutes. The maximum distribution of blood flow is achieved after 35-45 minutes and lasts about 3-5 hours.
The drug "Morphine": application
Medication "Morphine" is used as a painkiller for various diseases and injuries, which are accompanied by fairly strong pain. In addition, it is used during preparation for surgery, as well as in the postoperative period. Often it is prescribed for insomnia, severe cough and shortness of breath, which is due to acute heart failure.
Sometimes "Morphine" is used in radiological practice during the study of the stomach, gall bladder and 12 duodenal ulcer. This is due to the fact that the introduction of this drug increases the tone of the muscles of the stomach, enhances its peristalsis and accelerates emptying. Thanks to this effect, it becomes much easier for specialists to identify an ulcer and a tumor of internal organs.
Indications for use
As you know, morphine in cancer contributes to the rapid elimination of pain, which greatly facilitates the condition of the patient. In this regard, it should be noted that this tool:
- suppresses severe pain syndrome with injuries, malignant neoplasms, myocardial infarction and unstable angina ;
- used as an additional drug for local or general anesthesia during surgery;
- sometimes used during childbirth, coughing (if other drugs are ineffective) and pulmonary edema;
- appointed before the X-ray examination of the stomach, duodenum and gall bladder.
Contraindications
Such a drug is not recommended for hypersensitivity to components, respiratory depression (for example, against the background of drug or alcohol poisoning) and central nervous system, as well as paralytic intestinal obstruction. In addition, morphine cannot be used for spinal and epidural anesthesia.
Use with extreme caution
Use this drug with extreme caution for abdominal pain for an unclear reason, emotional lability, asthma attacks, arrhythmias, convulsions, drug dependence, alcoholism, suicidal tendencies, cholelithiasis, as well as during surgery on the urinary system and gastrointestinal organs. In addition, this drug should be carefully used for brain injuries, prostatic hyperplasia, liver or kidney failure, intracranial hypertension, urethral stricture, hypothyroidism, severe inflammatory bowel disease, epileptic syndrome, pregnancy, lactation and after surgery on the biliary tract . Use morphine with extreme caution should also be in serious condition of patients, in the elderly and childhood.
Dosage
After answering the question of what morphine is, what should be said about its dosages.
For ingestion, the patient should always consult a doctor. After all, treatment should be selected depending on the individual sensitivity and severity of the pain syndrome. A single dose of this drug is 10-20 mg for adults and 0.2-0.8 mg / kg for children.
To take prolonged-action capsules, a single dosage should be 10-100 mg twice a day. For subcutaneous injection - 1 mg, and for intramuscular and intravenous - 10 mg. The maximum daily dose is 50 mg. If the patient needs rectal administration, then the intestines should be cleaned first. Adult suppositories are prescribed in an amount of 30 mg every 13 hours.
Overdose
With improper use of this drug, the following side effects may occur in a patient:
- cold and clammy sweat;
- confusion of consciousness;
- fatigue;
- miosis;
- drowsiness;
- intracranial hypertension;
- bradycardia;
- nervousness;
- sharp weakness;
- hypothermia;
- slow labored breathing ;
- dry mouth
- anxiety;
- delirious psychosis;
- dizziness;
- lowering blood pressure;
- hallucinations;
- cramps
- muscle stiffness, etc.