Ibuprofen and Morphine for Acute Sickle Cell Pain
Research type
Research Study
Full title
An Evaluation of the Effectiveness of Ibuprofen and Morphine for Acute Pain in Sickle Cell Disease
IRAS ID
10181
Sponsor organisation
North West London Hospitals NHS Trust
Eudract number
2008-006846-24
ISRCTN Number
ISRCTN
Clinicaltrials.gov Identifier
NCT
Research summary
Sickle cell disease is an inherited disorder of red blood cells in which red blood cells change shape and can block small blood vessels, causing pain and long term damage to organs. Severe pain crisis usually leads to hospital admission, and opioids such as morphine are recommended for treatment. However, morphine has some side effects including nausea, constipation, itching, and mood changes. Also, morphine can precipitate other complications including a condition called sickle acute chest syndrome where there is infarction (injury) in the chest. Better ways to manage sickle cell pain are required. Some studies have been done in other countries with different types of opioids, and other groups of painkillers called non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs). One recent study also showed that treating sickle cell pain with morphine through 'patient controlled analgesia' (PCA) is preferred. In our study, we propose to study a combination of ibuprofen (an effective NSAID) and morphine through PCA in adults with sickle cell pain crisis and admitted to hospital, with a view that this would lead to a reduction in the amount of morphine used over 4 days, better pain relief, improved mood, less side effects, and increased patient satisfaction.This study would be developed with input from patients with sickle cell disease, the Sickle Cell Society, and carried out jointly with the MRC Clinical Trials Unit, and a group of hospitals in North West London.
REC name
London - Central Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
08/H0718/79
Date of REC Opinion
27 Feb 2009
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion