Fentanyl: Chronic Pain Reliever, Opioid, Pain Patch, More Potent than Morphine

Fentanyl is an opioid analgesic that is approximately 80 times more potent than morphine.

According to Wikipedia, fentanyl is used for anesthesia and analgesia, most often in the operating room and intensive care unit and fentanyl transdermal pain patch (brand name--Duragesic) is used in chronic pain management. Fentanyl patches release fentanyl gel into body fats, which then slowly release the drug into the bloodstream over 72 hours, allowing for long lasting relief from pain. Fentanyl patches are manufactured in five patch sizes: 12.5 micrograms per hour, 25 micrograms per hour, 50 micrograms per hour, 75 micrograms per hour, and 100 micrograms per hour.

Opioid refers to all drugs, natural and synthetic that binds to specific receptors and produce morphine-like effects. (For reference, opiate refers to all drugs derived from opium—the juice of the poppy plant.)

The rate of fentanyl pain relief absorption depends on temperature, skin type, and placement of the patch. The typical fentanyl pain patch will take effect usually within 8-12 hours, thus fentanyl patches are often prescribed with another opiate to handle breakthrough-pain.

There is no data available for how fentanyl affects the elderly or debilitated patients which may be why there are an increasing number of respiratory deaths. The FDA started investigating fentanyl respiratory deaths in 2006.

First marketed and used under the name Sublimaze, fentanyl was adopted by the medical community as an intravenous medicine in the 1960s. Fentanyl was used for pain management in heart surgery and for localized surgery.

Then the drug companies used fentanyl to control the cancer pain. Fentanyl should only be used for long-term chronic pain management not for the temporary relief of pain.