European journal of pain : EJP
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Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative Study
Reduction of human experimental muscle pain by alfentanil and morphine.
Musculoskeletal pain is a major clinical problem. By using various experimental models in humans, the understanding of the basic mechanisms behind muscle pain can increase, thereby giving hope for new and optimized treatment. Opioids are increasingly often used to treat muscle pain. ⋯ In conclusion, this is the first study to compare two high doses of alfentanil and morphine on experimental muscle pain in humans. Both alfentanil and morphine reduced experimental muscle pain. There were no indications of any true pharmacodynamic differences between the two drugs.