THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN LONGTERM USE OF MORPHINE AND COGNITIVE FUNCTION IN CERVICAL CANCER PATIENTS AT THE PALLIATIVE CARE CLINIC OF DR. SOETOMO HOSPITAL IN SURABAYA

Abstract

Objectives: Cervical cancer is one of the most common gynecological cancers found in women worldwide. Cervical cancer ranks 14th among all cancers and 4th among cancers in women. Pain is the most common symptom experienced by patients with advanced cervical cancer. Most women with cervical cancer are likely to experience moderate to severe pain. Morphine is one of the strong opioids that are often given in the management of moderate to severe cancer pain. However, morphine has been associated with negative effects on cognitive function such as memory impairment, delayed reaction time, and memory loss. This study aims to analyze the pain level of cervical cancer patients, analyze the relationship between longterm use of morphine and cognitive function, and analyze the relationship between morphine dose and cognitive function.

Methodology: A cross-sectional study with 47 subjects consisting of women with cervical cancer. Pain scale measurement using Numeric Rating Scale with a scale of 0-10, Subjects were interviewed and guided to fill out the Mini Mental State Examination questionnaire for cognitive function with a scale of 0-30. And daily morphine use was seen from medical records.

Results: This study showed that the majority of cervical cancer patients with mild pain were 26 people (55.3%). From the Chi Square correlation test results, there was no relationship between the longterm use of morphine and cognitive function, as evidenced by the value of p> 0.05, which is 0.572. And from the Spearman test there was no relationship between morphine dose and cognitive function, as evidenced by the value of p> 0.05, which is 0.094 with r = 0.247. Although statistically there was no relationship, subjects who used morphine for more than 12 months had lower scores for orientation, attention, calculation, recall, and language compared to subjects who used morphine for 6 to 12 months.

Conclusion: Longterm use of morphine is not related to cognitive function.