Has Anyone

[Psybbo]

Any experience of morphine patches? Thank you for any information.

[bednobs]

yes i do - what wou;d you like to know?

[nailit]

Hey Psybbo, got a friend thats on them, if I can be of assistance drop me an email and I'll find out what I can. x

[Psybbo]

Thanks both, are there different strengths and generally when would they be prescribed?

[nailit]

Dont know about strength but my mates got CFS and is prescribed them. Hes coming over tomorrow evening so can ask (question) him about them. Never really asked him about them. I also know my mum tried them a few years back but turned out to be allergic to morphine.

[bednobs]

yes, there are different strengths.
If you are talking about fentanyl patches, in each of them there is a resevoir of pain killing medicine that is held next to the skin by a sticky plaster typething and changed every 3 days, giving a constant background level of pain relief. Reasons to have them instead of oral morphone might be if there were swallowing difficulties, or nausea/sickness that prevented tablets being taken or if the side effects from morphine tablets were intolerable. Sometimes a patch might be more tolerable to the patient/person

[bednobs]

is the person swapping from tablets? if so the transition has to be well managed, as it takes 12 hours from applying hte first patch for the full pain reliving effects to happen

[bednobs]

and anyone living with the person should be careful - when the patch is changed, they need to be folded in half and put in the next empty packet before being chucked - you don't want to step/sit on a patch and not notice for a while!

[bednobs]

ps notice from a quick google that fentanyl patches are now matrix,rather than liquid reservoir. This means that the patch is inpregnated, rather than holding the liquid medicine next to the skin. It also means they can be cut, if a smaller dose is required

[Psybbo]

I apologise I've accidently clicked on Best Answer three times, sorry I'm just a bit upset.

[bednobs]

i don't know your situation, but it doesn't "mean" anything to prognosis to start morphine - i myself was on morphine (and then patches) before i had a hip replacement and was then able to come off them

[nailit]

Dont want to hijack your thread Psybbo, but Bednobs seems knowlegeble about this. Why would my mate be on morphine patches for CFS?
Never asked or questioned but why you would take a pain relief drug for chronic fatigue?
Sorry sibs for going off key but just realised ive never asked him.

[bednobs]

one of the main problems in CFS (apart from fatigue) is chronic pain

[Psybbo]

Thanks Bednobs and Nailit, my mother is on these patches and, although the leg pain has eased, she's now complaining of pain in arm and other leg/back.
My S-I-L was prescribed them after bowel cancer and I presume these would be stronger?

[nailit]

Thanks Bednobs. I know that he suffers from pain of various kinds but never connected it to his CFS, he never makes an issue of it...or rarely discusses it...thanks for that.

[bednobs]

not necessarily, people experience pain differently!

[pixie373]

Hi sibs xx I can't really add any more to Bednobs' posts, but we have had people still in pain on the patches. Is she taking any other painkillers?

[janbee]

I had them many years ago after an op and I hated them. I found out pretty soon afterwards that I'm allergic to morphine.