The mu drugs, however, have the disadvantage of sometimes producing undesirable side effects, such as nausea and disorientation. On the other hand, kappa-opioids, such as nalbuphine or butorphanol used in the study, have many fewer side effects, although sometimes general malaise has been reported. It is important to feel 'normal' again. This is critical information for the development of new therapies to benefit both men and women. Other studies have shown that men and women also differ in their perception of pain.
Women appear to have lower thresholds and less tolerance.
Continuing their work in this area, the study team plans a dual-pronged approach. They are going back to the lab to study gender differences at the basic science level, while in a clinical setting they will examine the effectiveness of kappa-opioid drugs for women with a variety of conditions. Studies have told us women are more sensitive to pain, but one intriguing study indicates both men and women believe women are better able to cope with pain. Dr. Miaskowski says a special research challenge will be to enlarge the number of people available for study. Our recent research deals with acute pain, so the kappa-opioid drugs are used for a short period of time.