neurotin/gabapentin

[joycenalex]

my primary care doctor put me on this after months of my denying that my low back pain was getting worse. i decided to start it when i was dragging my leg as much as stepping. is anyone else on it for low back pain? the only side effects i see so far are decreased appetite and some mild gippy tummy., and the pain is abit better thanks

[Lobodeb]

My husband was on it, but as an anti-convulsant. I didn't know it had any other uses.

I don't remember him having any side effects from it. I just remember it being terribly expensive.

I hope your back feels better.

[Pam]

My mother is on Neurontin for trigeminal neuralgia. Before this medicine she was in agonizing pain.

[trayi52]

My husband is a diabetic, and they put him on it for leg pain. My sister-in-law is also on it for leg pain. It has helped them for that. Sometimes my hubby says it just doesn't work for his leg pain, but my sister-in-law swears by Neurotin, says it is the best for her leg pain.

Willie

[Daisy and Delilah]

I have a friend that was on it for shingles. She didn't find much relief from it but she was in undescribable agony. Nothing really helped her besides time--she just had to ride it out. I have another friend that takes Lyrica(spelling?). Apparently it's the only thing they've found for her that reaches the nerve endings and reduces her terrible pain. Does anyone know if Neurontin and Lyrica are on the same line?

[Catsnclay]

I've been on it for several years now for lower back pain, and it does work. But..........(there is always a but ) my back pain is still there.


Even though I have back pain, I do think the neurontin is helping. I also take MS Contin, Vicodian and I have a pain patch for "spot" pain.

Feel free to PM me if you need more info.


Neurontin IS a medication for anti-convultions, but they are finding that it helps with pain too.

Go to www.webmd.com and look up it up, I do this with all my medications.

[cassiesmom]

Neurontin (gabapentin) and Lyrica (pregabalin) are both anti-convulsants. There are some medications out there that work on chronic pain, but they are not officially pain meds. When I worked in the amputee program we used to use the anti-convulsant Tegretol for phantom limb pain and diabetic nerve pain. That was before Neurontin and Lyrica, though. They are both expensive and that is frustrating. Neurontin and Lyrica are both products of Pfizer, which has a program called Helpful Answers that provides prescription assistance for people without insurance coverage.

[Daisy and Delilah]

Thanks Elyse. That is very helpful. I thought there might have been a connection Very interesting.

[slick]

have another friend that takes Lyrica(spelling?). Apparently it's the only thing they've found for her that reaches the nerve endings and reduces her terrible pain. Does anyone know if Neurontin and Lyrica are on the same line?

I was on both. Gabapentin for my nerve pain after my op last year....I'm off that now. I will be taking Lyrica forever because of the neuropathy in my feet caused by diabetes. Lyrica works OK but is very expensive....$200/month. Thankfully I have extended benefits at work that pays for that. When I was on both gabapentin and lyrica it worked wonders for nerve pain. I still have 3/4 of a bottle of gabapentin left...just in case I have another operation.

I was told that gabapentin does not actually work on the pain. What it does is work on the brain so you don't feel the pain as much. That's why I was so forgetful when I was on that drug. My hair also thinned out and I lost half my eyebrows.

[mike001]

Neurontin is often used as an anticonvulsant, but it certainly has been widely used for intractable pain. Some people find a dramatic change while others don't. I guess it depends on the person.
Lyrica is much the same, some people don't like it because of the weight gain, nausea, etc. But there are side effects to everthing.

[joycenalex]

...great i'm gonna be bald, fat, forgetful but painfree. okay, so off to the pain management doctor i go......

[Freedom]

Neurontin is often prescribed for diabetics who have pain from neuropathy.

Neuropathy is when the nerves are not working properly. It has something to do with high blood sugar levels effecting the nerves.

Anyone who is diabetic and who is experiencing pain, particularly pain in the legs, should also have a blood test for pernicious anemia. This is a lack of Vitamin B12. Prolonged low B12 can often result in muscle pain, especially pain in the legs.

Something in some of the oral diabetes meds actually contributes to pernicious anemia. Studies are now under way; saw this info in a recent issue of Diabetes Health, publishes by the American Diabetes Association. There are other reasons why a diabetic may get pernicious anemia. Not every diabetic gets pernicious anemia.

Don't be fooled by the word "anemia." This has nothing to do with iron levels or red blood cells. The body needs a certain enzyme to absorb B12. With out that enzyme, the body can't absorbe all that is needs, so you have a lack of it. Hence you need to have regular B12 shots so that there is more around for your body to absorb.

My Dad has diabetes. He had horrible leg pain. So bad that twice we went to the hospital ER. They could not find anything. His primary care doc was treating his diabetes, and prescribed neurontin for the pain and suggested we look into a pain management clinic. Instead, I found a great endocrinologist for Dad. First visit, we described all the above. He obviously had some thoughts, but he kept it to himself and ordered blood work. We got a phone call to come back into the office 3 days later. Now I give Dad a Vitamin B12 shot regularly. The pain stopped once we got those B12 levels back up. And no more need for the neurontin.

Hope this helps someone out there.
Sandra