Efficacy of subarachnoid morphine in a community hospital

Two hundred seventy-five patients who underwent major surgery and received subarachnoid morphine for postoperative pain relief were prospectively studied to establish the benefits of its routine use in a community hospital.

Seventy-nine percent of all patients had a satisfactory analgesic-free interval of 18 hours, and postoperative analgesics were unnecessary for the first 24 hours in 56% of all patients. Pruritus developed in 26% of all patients, 16% experienced nausea, vomiting, or both, and 4% experienced urinary retention. There were no cases of respiratory depression. Ninety-two percent of all patients were managed on the medical/surgical floors without incident, and 90% of the patients were satisfied with their results.

It was shown that, when there are properly trained floor nurses, subarachnoid morphine (0.1-0.4 mg) can be an effective, safe, and simple method for postoperative pain control in a community hospital.