Inhaled morphine to relieve dyspnea in advanced cystic fibrosis lung disease

Inhaled morphine has been used to treat dyspnea in a variety of clinical settings. There are, however, no reports of its use in treating patients with end-stage lung disease due to cystic fibrosis (CF). We report on the use of inhaled morphine sulfate in a 13-year-old boy with CF, advanced lung disease, and acute respiratory failure. Therapy was effective in reducing his subjective feeling of air hunger and improving his BORG score. His sole significant adverse effect was headache after 2 days of treatment at 4-hourly intervals.