4 Ways to Treat Morphine Poisoning

1. Check for Symptoms

Morphine is a painkiller that is one of the principle derivatives of opium. Though it has medicinal purpose, the potential for abuse is high, and morphine poisoning usually occurs from recreational use. Because tolerance is so high and users need to take increasingly large amounts in order to get the same effect, the risk of an overdose is always present. Symptoms include cold clammy skin, bluish lips and extremities, pinpoint or dilated pupils, slow breathing or heartbeat, vomiting, nausea and slow response time. If you spot these symptoms, call 911 and get the victim to a hospital immediately.

2. Clear the Victim's Air Passages

Clear away any vomit or fluids from the mouth and lungs. Lay the victim flat on his back and then roll him over onto his side in order to clear any fluid from the air passages. If the victim is struggling to breathe, perform CPR and monitor pulse and breathing to make sure that both stay steady.

3. Get the Morphine Out of the System

This means removing the morphine from the digestive tract, though you shouldn't induce vomiting unless a poison control center specifically tells you to. Activated charcoal tablets are an alternate solution, as are commercial laxatives. Both help speed the morphine out of the victim's system before any more can be absorbed. If you're in a hospital, a doctor may also attempt gastric lavage, which entails running a tube into the stomach through the victim's nose and cleansing it out with water or saline.

4. Administer Naloxone

Along with placing the victim on a respirator and providing intravenous fluids, naloxone is the best way to stabilize someone with morphine poisoning. It's an antidote for morphine, normally administered intravenously along with glucose and other fluids. It can also be administered in spray form through the nose. Kits containing naloxene are sometimes included as part of an emergency kit for drug addicts. Its brand name is Narcan, and it works by temporarily removing the morphine presence in the brain. You should keep the drug out of the light and store it at room temperature.