Initially, doctors use a number of painkillers to treat severe chronic pain. Chronic pain includes osteoarthritis pain, nerve pain, cancer etc.. Drugs like Morphine are generally prescribed for such cases.

What Is Morphine?

Morphine is a very strong analgesic drug. An opioid that has the power to overcome severe chronic pain and generally given when all the other painkillers become ineffective. Specially, scientists extract it from a poppy plant; it targets the central nervous system (CNS), and works on the opioid receptors. This blocks the pain signals and helps in providing relief from severe pain.

What Are Its Side Effects?

Using such powerful painkiller for longer period of time can result in various side effects such as:

• Drowsiness 
• Dry mouth 
• Headache 
• Constipation 
• Sweating
• Irregular breathing 
• Allergic reaction 
• Seizure 
• Dependency 
• Tolerance 
• Withdrawal symptoms 
• Nausea 
• Dizziness etc.

FDA guidelines 

Morphine is a FDA approved drug that comes with strict warning for its usage. FDA has released a list of precautionary measures for this drug:

• Used only for severe chronic pain.
• Do not overdose. Recommended Dosage is 10- 30 mg as per doctor’s advice.
• Avoid consuming alcohol along with it.
• Generally, it’s not prescribed to children; however, a child above two, suffering from severe pain can use it after a doctor’s prescription. 
• Do not stop using this medicine in an abrupt manner as it may cause withdrawal problems.
• Check patients history of substance addiction before prescribing Morphine.

Conclusion 

Morphine has the potential for addiction and there are several people who misuse it. Overdosing can lead to permanent health issues and in several cases death. Always ask your health care provider before consuming this drug for severe pain. It is also used as a painkiller after dental surgeries or various other surgeries and long term usage may lead to Morphine tolerance. In case you see any serious side-effects immediately contact your family and get a check up done.