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A dinical eomparison of the analgesie effects of methadone and morphine administered intramuseularly, and oforally and parenterally administered methadone
Author(s) -
Beaver W. T.,
Wallenstein S. L.,
Houde R. W.,
Rogers A.
Publication year - 1967
Publication title -
clinical pharmacology and therapeutics
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.941
H-Index - 188
eISSN - 1532-6535
pISSN - 0009-9236
DOI - 10.1002/cpt196783415
Subject(s) - methadone , morphine , potency , medicine , analgesic , anesthesia , pharmacology , crossover study , chemistry , biochemistry , alternative medicine , pathology , in vitro , placebo
The relative analgesic potency of single graded intramuscular doses of methadone and morphine was evaluated in a double‐blind crossover study in patients with chronic pain due to cancer. If one considered either "total" or "peak" effects, the analgesic potency of methadone was estimated to be equal to or slightly greater than that of morphine. The time‐effect curves of the two drugs were similar, and there was no evidence that methadone was longer acting than morphine. Oral and intramuscular methadone were compared in a similar patient group. In terms of "total" effect, methadone was found to be approximately one half as potent orally as it was parenterally, a relatively high ratio for oral activity as compared with other narcotics. In roughly equianalgesic doses, the occurrence of side effects was qualitatively and quantitatively similar for parenteral morphine and methadone and for oral and parenteral methadone.