Opioid Analgesics
Included In This Lesson
Study Tools For Opioid Analgesics
Outline
Overview
- Opioids are given for moderate to severe pain
- They will not provide the same relief as an epidural
- They are typically given IV in labor and fast-acting
- Given PO in the postpartum period to treat pain
Nursing Points
General
- Ideal to be given when needed for breakthrough/acute pain during labor, not chronically throughout pregnancy
- Newborn can be born addicted→ refer to addicted newborn lesson
- History taking is essential before administration to make sure they haven’t been taking them during pregnancy
- Some meds are contraindicated if someone is already dependent on specific meds, as they may elicit withdrawal symptoms for both baby and mom
Assessment
- Patient history
- Pain level
- How close is the patient to delivery
Therapeutic Management
- Medicate properly
- Hydromorphone (Dilaudid)
- Morphine
- Butorphanol tartrate (Stadol)
- Nalbuphine (Nubain)
- Oxycodone
- Hydrocodone
- Naloxone available
- Anti nausea medications
- Nausea is a side effect of Opioids
- Monitor for overdose
- Respirations less than 12/min is a concern
- Hypotension
Nursing Concepts
- Pharmacology
- Comfort
- Safety
Patient Education
- Fast acting
- Treatment options
Transcript
In this lesson I will help you understand the various opioids that are used as analgesics and when you will use them.
Alright opioids are used to treat pain that occurs. So they are given for moderate to severe pain. In labor they are usually given IV so that they act fast. They aren’t going to provide the same numbing effect as an epidural would. During the postpartum period period they are used to treat pain and usually given PO. So for cramping, incisional pain, or episiotomy pain.
The patient will need assessment for her history. We need to know if she has been taking opioids throughout the pregnancy or has a history of opioid use or abuse in her history. We want to know this so we don’t give opioids fi she has a history of use and abuse or if she currently takes them we need to know for the newborn care since they can be born addicted. You can refer to the lesson on the addicted newborn for more on that. The patient’s pain level should also be assessed so we can medicate her properly and we need to know how close she is to delivery if she is a laboring patient. If she is close to delivery and we give a narcotic it can cause respiratory depression in the newborn which we don’t want. Let’s review medications that are given.
We need to manage our patient with proper medications. So during labor medications like Hydromorphone, Morphine, Butorphanol tartrate or stadol, Nalbuphine or nubain are options to give. In the postpartum time frame the most widely used opioid medications are Oxycodone and Hydrocodone. And with these opioids we want to have naloxone or narcan available to reverse any overdose effects and have for delivery of the newborn if delivery happens too soon after opioids are given.
Additional management besides the opioid analgesia and Naloxone being available will be anti nausea medications because this is a side effect of Opioids and we want to monitor for overdose. So a patient that has respirations less than 12 a minute is a concern and hypotension are things we will watch for. We will educate the patient on the medication options and that they are fast acting.
Pharmacology and safety are our concepts because we are talking about medication and the safety of the patient is important when giving opioids.
Ok so what is important? Opioids are used as analgesics during labor and in the postpartum period. They are fast acting but will not take away pain during labor the same as an epidural. Naloxone should be available to reverse any overdosage and available at delivery for the newborn to reverse respiratory depression.
Make sure you check out the resources attached to this lesson and review the key points. Now, go out and be your best selves today. And, as always, happy nursing.
Rina’s NCLEX Study Plan 2026
Concepts Covered:
- Endocrine System
- Studying
- Urinary System
- Tissues and Glands
- Nervous System
- Circulatory System
- Medication Administration
- Hematologic System
- Skeletal System
- Digestive System
- Respiratory System
- Emergency Care of the Cardiac Patient
- Reproductive System
- Endocrine and Metabolic Disorders
- Basics of Human Biology
- Muscular System
- Sensory System
- Communication
- Legal and Ethical Issues
- Basics of NCLEX
- Prenatal Concepts
- Prioritization
- Fundamentals of Emergency Nursing
- Documentation and Communication
- Delegation
- Community Health Overview
- Factors Influencing Community Health
- Concepts of Mental Health
- Test Taking Strategies
- Note Taking
- Substance Abuse Disorders
- Behavior
- Concepts of Population Health
- Concepts of Pharmacology
- Health & Stress
- Labor and Delivery
- Gastrointestinal Disorders
- Microbiology
- Depressive Disorders
- Postpartum Care
- Emergency Care of the Trauma Patient
- Emotions and Motivation
- Growth & Development
- Intelligence and Language
- Psychological Disorders
- State of Consciousness
- Respiratory Disorders
- EENT Disorders
- Infectious Disease Disorders
- Integumentary Disorders
- Neurologic and Cognitive Disorders
- Hematologic Disorders
- Cardiovascular Disorders
- Musculoskeletal Disorders
- Renal and Urinary Disorders
- Oncologic Disorders
- Anxiety Disorders
- Cognitive Disorders
- Eating Disorders
- Personality Disorders
- Psychotic Disorders
- Trauma-Stress Disorders
- Bipolar Disorders
- Developmental Considerations
- Psychological Emergencies
- Somatoform Disorders
- Perioperative Nursing Roles
- Preoperative Nursing
- Central Nervous System Disorders – Brain
- Lower GI Disorders
- Peripheral Nervous System Disorders
- Cardiac Disorders
- Integumentary Disorders
- Musculoskeletal Disorders
- Noninfectious Respiratory Disorder
- Postoperative Nursing
- Respiratory Emergencies
- Intraoperative Nursing
- Disorders of Pancreas
- Urinary Disorders
- Neurological Emergencies
- Central Nervous System Disorders – Spinal Cord
- Renal Disorders
- Infectious Respiratory Disorder
- Sexually Transmitted Infections
- EENT Disorders
- Shock
- Cardiovascular
- Shock
- Disorders of the Posterior Pituitary Gland
- Endocrine
- Disorders of the Thyroid & Parathyroid Glands
- Gastrointestinal
- Upper GI Disorders
- Liver & Gallbladder Disorders
- Neurological
- Respiratory
- Hematologic Disorders
- Acute & Chronic Renal Disorders
- Disorders of the Adrenal Gland
- Immunological Disorders
- Oncology Disorders
- Female Reproductive Disorders
- Musculoskeletal Trauma
- Vascular Disorders
- Male Reproductive Disorders
- Newborn Complications
- Disorders of Thermoregulation
- Neurological Trauma
- Integumentary Important Points
- Multisystem
- Emergency Care of the Neurological Patient
- Emergency Care of the Respiratory Patient
- Prefixes
- Suffixes
- Fetal Development
- Terminology
- Proteins
- Statistics
- Med Term Basic
- Med Term Whole
- Basics of Mathematics
- Basics of Sociology
- Pregnancy Risks
- Labor Complications
- Newborn Care
- Postpartum Complications
- Understanding Society
- Adult
- Dosage Calculations
- Adulthood Growth and Development
- Learning Pharmacology