Sweating And Vomiting After Taking Morphine. Is It Safe To Take Paracetamol?

Posted on Mon, 11 Nov 2013

Medically reviewed by Ask A Doctor - 24x7 Medical Review Team

Mon, 11 Nov 2013 Answered on

Tue, 3 Dec 2013 Last reviewed on

Question : Hi. My girlfriend had some morphine sulphate given to her last night. I believe she was given 2 capsules containing 50 mgs each. After this she appeared to be fine besides the obvious normal expected affects.. Shortly after she was given an injection containing another 50 mg. she started sweating a lots and vomiting. She slept well but has been vomiting a lot today. She seems to be getting better but is there any danger of her still having fatal side effects after this amount of time. It has been almost 24 hours since she had the injection. Is it safe for her to have some paracetamol or perhaps a small dose (5m) of Valium . Don't need info on the associate danger as this will definitely not be happening again. Hope you can set my mind at ease. Thank you.

Answered by Dr. Kerry Pottinger (37 minutes later)

Brief Answer: Can take paracetamol, not Valium. Detailed Answer: Hi, Thank you for using Healthcare Magic. I can reassure you that your girlfriend is highly unlikely to suffer serious side-effects at this stage after the morphine intake. However, I suggest you do not give her any Valium as this has sedative effects as does the morphine and there is still a risk that she becomes excessively sleepy if she were to take Valium. There will be no problem with taking paracetamol if she needs pain relief for headaches. I suggest you ensure she drinks water to avoid dehydration as she has been vomiting. I predict she will begin to feel better over the next 24 hours. She should not drive for 24 hours as the morphine will affect her reactions. I hope she feels better soon. If you have any further questions, please do not hesitate to contact me. Regards, Dr K A Pottinger, MBChB FRCA

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar