A guide for medical practitioners published by the Medical Commission on Accident Prevention, Medical Aspects of Fitness to Drive, has been widely distributed within the medical profession. In a section on drugs acting on the central nervous system it states that "the more powerful narcotic analgesics such as morphine produced marked sedation and patients requiring them should not drive." This has important implications for the quality of life of patients receiving palliative care who require regular doses of morphine to control pain. Experience in palliative care indicates that the symptoms that occur at the start of treatment with morphine generally resolve within a few days of the dose being stabilised. It is commonly believed, therefore, that patients taking a stable dose may drive without hazard to themselves or other road users. There are, however, few objective data confirming this belief. (Author/publisher)
Samenvatting