Abstract
Severe symptoms were occasionally seen in postoperative period in older patients. Es-pecially after upper abdominal surgery, disturbances of abdominal type of respiration, ex-pectoration are seen and FRC decreases, and imbalance of V/Q ratio occurs.
Epidural injection of 2 mg of morphine in 10 ml of saline was used for postoperative relief of pain in 15 elderly patients who underwent upper abdominal surgery. (3: Cholelit-hiasis. 12: Stomach cancer.) And pain relief, arterial blood gases, and complications were analyzed. Five patients complained no pain. In seven patients, analgesic effect per-sisted for 4-22 hours. (mean=10.3 hours.) In three patients, other analgesics were admin-istered for anxiety. There were no respiratory disturbance, no nausea, no dysuria, no delay of flatus, and no pulmonary complications.
After injection of epidural morphine, respiratory and circuratory system were stable.
Although this study is small, it seems that this method is useful for postoperative relief of pain in upper abdominal surgery in the elderly.
