Comparison between fentanyl and morphine for use in analgesic anesthesia during open heart surgery

One hundred unselected adult cardiac patients operated on with extracorporeal circulation (ECC) underwent analgesic anesthesia. In half of the cases, the analgesic used was morphine and for the others fentanyl. Anesthesia was completed with flunitrazepam, pancuronium, nitrous oxyde and a neuroleptic if necessary. Operative, postoperative and recuperation periods were very satisfactory and very the same in both series. Due to its small administrated dosage (average 1.22 mg/kg) the secondary effects of morphine remained discrete. Although its long action suits well the concerned type of surgery there seems to be no reason to prefer it to fentanyl.