neurotin/gabapentin

[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.