Age and the pharmacokinetics of morphine

Eight healthy young and nine healthy elderly volunteers received 10 mg morphine sulphate as an intravenous infusion, an oral solution and a slow-release tablet (MST Continus, Napp Laboratories) on three separate occasions. Pharmacokinetic profiles of morphine base were measured over a 24-h period using 13 sampling times. The elderly group showed decreased morphine clearance with a trend to a smaller volume of distribution. They achieved higher maximum plasma concentrations (Cmax) after both oral formulations and had larger areas under the plasma concentration-time curves. The times to reach maximum concentrations were the same in both groups for all formulations.