Anest. intenziv. Med. 2004;15(4):195-196

Hallucinations as a Rare Complication of Morphin Administration for Postoperative AnalgesiaArticles

J. Málek¹, V. Štukavec², Z. Pelák²

¹ Klinika anesteziologie a resuscitace, UK, 3. lékařská fakulta a FNKV, Praha

² Klinika chirurgie, UK, 3. lékařská fakulta a FNKV, Praha

A case of a 47 years old patient without complicating diseases with disturbing auditory hallucinations after 24 hoursmorphine treatment is described. Morphine was administered for postoperative analgesia after probatory laparotomy ina dose of 10mg SC every 4 hours. The hallucinations were associated with a weak external stimulation (noise from monitorsand air conditioning) and were presented as a harmonic music (Russian choirs). Sometimes, the patient had visualsensations after closing his eyes. Most probably, the cause was morphine, because after its withdrawal and substitutionwith tramadol hallucinations disappeared during 24 hours. Similar cases are described as a rare complication of morphinetherapy in geriatric terminally ill patients and are not completely understood.

Keywords: morphine; postoperative analgesia; hallucinations

Published: August 1, 2004  Show citation