Effect of Morphine on Dyspnea and 6-Minute Walk Distance in Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension
Status:
Unknown status
Trial end date:
2019-12-31
Target enrollment:
Participant gender:
Summary
Despite advances in treatment and corresponding improvements in survival, patients with
pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) remain highly symptomatic. In one survey of 315
patients with PAH, sixty-eight percent had moderate or severe dyspnea on exertion and 40% had
a profound and clinically significant deficit in quality of life. Palliative care is being
increasingly investigated in life-limiting cardiovascular diseases to alleviate symptoms. In
PAH, its implementation is frequently delayed until end-of-life. Opioids are a common
palliative care intervention, however the efficacy and safety of opioids for symptom relief
in PAH has not been evaluated.