morphine (injection)

What is the most important information I should know about morphine?

What is morphine?

Morphine is an opioid medicine used to treat severe chronic pain in adults and children.

Morphine may also be used for purposes not listed in this medication guide.

What should I discuss with my healthcare provider before using morphine?

• severe asthma or breathing problems;
• a stomach or bowel obstruction (including paralytic ileus); or
• if you have taken an MAO inhibitor in the past 14 days, such as isocarboxazid, linezolid, methylene blue injection, phenelzine, or tranylcypromine.

Tell your doctor if you have ever had:

• breathing problems, sleep apnea (breathing that stops during sleep);
• a head injury, brain tumor, or seizures;
• a drug or alcohol addiction, or mental illness;
• urination problems;
• liver or kidney disease; or
• pancreatitis.

Ask a doctor before using opioid medicine if you are breastfeeding. Tell your doctor if you notice severe drowsiness or slow breathing in the nursing baby.

How is morphine injection given?

Follow the directions on your prescription label and read all medication guides or instruction sheets. Never use morphine in larger amounts, or for longer than prescribed. Tell your doctor if you feel an increased urge to use more of this medicine.

Morphine is injected into a muscle or a vein. Morphine injection is sometimes given with an infusion pump that controls your dosing.

You may have withdrawal symptoms if you stop using morphine suddenly. Ask your doctor before stopping the medicine.

Keep your medicine in a place where no one can use it improperly.

What happens if I miss a dose?

Because you will receive morphine in a hospital or with a controlled infusion pump, you are not likely to miss a dose.

What happens if I overdose?

Your doctor may recommend you get naloxone (a medicine to reverse an opioid overdose) and keep it with you at all times. A person caring for you can give the naloxone if you stop breathing or don't wake up. Your caregiver must still get emergency medical help and may need to perform CPR (cardiopulmonary resuscitation) on you while waiting for help to arrive.

Anyone can buy naloxone from a pharmacy or local health department. Make sure any person caring for you knows where you keep naloxone and how to use it.

What should I avoid while using morphine?

What are the possible side effects of morphine?

Opioid medicine can slow or stop your breathing, and death may occur. A person caring for you should give naloxone and/or seek emergency medical attention if you have slow breathing with long pauses, blue colored lips, or if you are hard to wake up.

• slow heart rate, sighing, shallow breathing, breathing that stops;
• extreme drowsiness, feeling like you might pass out;
• flushing (sudden warmth, redness, or tingly feeling);
• a seizure;
• high levels of serotonin in the body --agitation, hallucinations, fever, fast heart rate, muscle stiffness, twitching, loss of coordination, nausea, diarrhea; or
• low cortisol levels -- nausea, vomiting, loss of appetite, dizziness, worsening tiredness or weakness.

Serious breathing problems may be more likely in older adults and people who are debilitated or have wasting syndrome or chronic breathing disorders.

Common side effects may include:

• breathing problems;
• drowsiness, dizziness;
• constipation, nausea, vomiting;
• sweating; or
• numbness, tingling, or cold feeling in your hands and feet.

This is not a complete list of side effects and others may occur. Call your doctor for medical advice about side effects. You may report side effects to FDA at 1-800-FDA-1088.

What other drugs will affect morphine?

• other opioid medicines;
• a benzodiazepine sedative like Valium, Klonopin, or Xanax;
• sleep medicine, muscle relaxers, or other drugs that make you drowsy; or
• drugs that affect serotonin, such as antidepressants, stimulants, or medicine for migraines or Parkinson's disease.

This list is not complete. Many drugs may affect morphine, including prescription and over-the-counter medicines, vitamins, and herbal products. Not all possible interactions are listed here.

Where can I get more information?

Your doctor or pharmacist can provide more information about morphine.

Remember, keep this and all other medicines out of the reach of children, never share your medicines with others, and use this medication only for the indication prescribed.

Every effort has been made to ensure that the information provided by Cerner Multum, Inc. ('Multum') is accurate, up-to-date, and complete, but no guarantee is made to that effect. Drug information contained herein may be time sensitive. Multum information has been compiled for use by healthcare practitioners and consumers in the United States and therefore Multum does not warrant that uses outside of the United States are appropriate, unless specifically indicated otherwise. Multum's drug information does not endorse drugs, diagnose patients or recommend therapy. Multum's drug information is an informational resource designed to assist licensed healthcare practitioners in caring for their patients and/or to serve consumers viewing this service as a supplement to, and not a substitute for, the expertise, skill, knowledge and judgment of healthcare practitioners. The absence of a warning for a given drug or drug combination in no way should be construed to indicate that the drug or drug combination is safe, effective or appropriate for any given patient. Multum does not assume any responsibility for any aspect of healthcare administered with the aid of information Multum provides. The information contained herein is not intended to cover all possible uses, directions, precautions, warnings, drug interactions, allergic reactions, or adverse effects. If you have questions about the drugs you are taking, check with your doctor, nurse or pharmacist.

Copyright 1996-2023 Cerner Multum, Inc. Version: 3.01. Revision date: 8/26/2021.