Endogenous Opioids (Endorphins) and the Control of Breathing

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Abstract
To the Editor: Santiago et al.1 reported that naloxone could restore flow-resistive load compensation in some normocapnic patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). However, respiratory sensitivity to hypercapnia was unaffected by the drug. Santiago et al. postulated that chronic respiratory distress might trigger endorphin generation in these patients. They argued that with a given degree of airway obstruction, the greater the sensitivity to respiratory stimuli, the greater the degree of breathlessness that would be induced by disease, and thus the greater the endorphin generation and the reversal of the effects of endorphins by naloxone.The patients with COPD and . . .

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