morphine bioavailability

[SirDonkeyPunch]

simple question here:

Is morphine more bioavailable sublingually opposed to orally, just wondering if shoving the used cottons under my tounge is better than just eatin em.

thanks

-SDP-

[vaxn8]

are you asking if it is MORE available subL?? or if it is at all?

[vaxn8]

I meant to answer and got distracted...

In terms of time to max serum concentration, oral morph is lightly faster (this has been argued about for years though!). Bioavailability is around 9% sl and 23% po. In order for a drug to be effective sl, it has to be potent, non-ionized at the pH of saliva, and lipophillic. Morphine is not the most potent opiate, is ionized at the pH of your mouth and it not very lipophillic at all. It is actually one of the least lipophillic, so no it doesn't work very well sl. Most people agree that the fact that it works at all is due to it being swallowed while the person is attempting to keep it under the tounge.

[Sitar]

Wow... I didn't know that about morphine. Cool info there.

[PRIZEFIGHTERINFERNO]

I meant to answer and got distracted...

In terms of time to max serum concentration, oral morph is lightly faster (this has been argued about for years though!). Bioavailability is around 9% sl and 23% po. In order for a drug to be effective sl, it has to be potent, non-ionized at the pH of saliva, and lipophillic. Morphine is not the most potent opiate, is ionized at the pH of your mouth and it not very lipophillic at all. It is actually one of the least lipophillic, so no it doesn't work very well sl. Most people agree that the fact that it works at all is due to it being swallowed while the person is attempting to keep it under the tounge.
thanks for the info...really good stuff here.