Study of Using Long Acting Antihistamine to Treat Opioid Induced Itching

Effect of Long Acting Antihistamine on Opioid- Induced Pruritus: A Double-blind Placebo Controlled Study

The purpose of this study is determine if long acting antihistamine like cetirizine can help with itching induced by opioid pain medications.

Inclusion Criteria:

• Children age 6-18yrs on opioids who develop pruritus and are willing to participate in the study

Exclusion Criteria:

• Children with history of chronic urticaria
• Children with other chronic pruritic condition like eczema, contact dermatitis, psoriasis
• Children with known hypersensitivity to cetirizine/zyrtec
• Children on H1 antihistamine like diphenhydramine, hydroxyzine, cetirizine, loratadine, fexofenadine, chlorpheniramine within the last 7days prior to randomization
• Children who have received Ondansetron within 24hrs prior to randomization
• Children who are on Tricyclic antidepressants
• Children who are unwilling or unable to swallow the capsule.
• Children with chronic liver or kidney disease