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Influence of a high‐fat meal on the absorption of morphine from oral solutions
Author(s) -
Gourlay Geoffrey K,
Plummer John L,
Cherry David A,
Foate Jeremy A,
Cousins Michael J
Publication year - 1989
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 - 10.1038/clpt.1989.166
Subject(s) - morphine , meal , medicine , cmax , pharmacokinetics , area under the curve , absorption (acoustics) , anesthesia , oral administration , pharmacology , physics , acoustics
The influence of a high‐fat meal on blood morphine concentrations after the administration of a morphine solution (50 mg dose) was studied in 12 patients with chronic pain. The oral morphine dose was administered in a total volume of 200 ml to patients either immediately after food intake or while in the fasting state. There was a 34% increase in the area under the curve (AUC) when morphine was administered immediately after food when compared with the fasting state ( p < 0.02). However, there was no significant difference between the maximum blood morphine concentration (C max ) or the time to maximum concentration (t max ) between the two treatment regimens. The shape of the blood morphine concentration‐time curve was consistently altered in the fed patients compared with patients who were in the fasting state, in as much as the blood morphine concentrations were maintained at a higher level from 240 to 600 minutes after the dose when the morphine was administered with food ( p < 0.02). It is suggested that morphine concentrations are maintained at higher levels, possibly resulting in more prolonged pain relief, when morphine is administered with food compared with the same dose administered to patients who are in the fasting state. Clinical Pharmacology and Therapeutics (1989) 46, 463–468; doi: 10.1038/clpt.1989.166