Acute Respiratory Failure Secondary to Low-Dose Opioid Administration in a Patient With Obstructive Sleep Apnea and...

We present a case of an obese 56-year-old male with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), obesity hypoventilation syndrome (OHS), and pituitary macroadenoma, who underwent nasal endoscopic trans-sphenoidal resection. Surgery was performed under general anesthesia, uneventfully as planned. The patient experienced, however, delayed emergence despite receiving adequate neuromuscular blockade agent reversal. Extubation was performed and the patient was transferred to the recovery room on a Venturi mask (50% fraction of inspired oxygen, FIO2)and 93% saturation. Postoperatively, the patient was complaining of acute pain that did not resolve with non-opioid medications and a low morphine dose (0.035 mg/kg) for pain management was administered. Subsequently, he developed severe respiratory depression, requiring intubation. After three hours, the patient was extubated, transferred to the intensive care unit, and discharged five days later. Although the patient recovered favorably, this case highlights the risks of administering opioids to patients with OSA and OHS. To our knowledge, this is the first case reporting extreme respiratory depression secondary to the administration of a very low dose of morphine in patients with these comorbidities. Therefore, it is essential to be cautious with the use of opioids and to explore multimodal pain relief methods for these patients.