Medicines for Fibromyalgia – Part II
In the May-June Arthritis Today magazine there was an article entitled All About Fibromyalgia Meds by Mary Anne Dunkin. Most of the medications are the same as the ones in I wrote about it Medicines for Fibromyalgia – Part I, but there are some new mentions. None of the treatments cure fibromyalgia, as there is no cure, but these medicines have been shown to help relieve symptoms.
This year’s article included indications for which fibromyalgia meds also helped two overlapping conditions – Irritable Bowel Syndrome (Amitriptyline, Duloxetine, Fluoxetine and Venlafaxine) and Restless Leg Syndrome (Gabapentin, Pregabalin). Newly mentioned meds are:
Sertraline (Zoloft) – A type of antidepressant called Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs). It can improve pain, fatigue, mood and sleep.
Paroxetine (Paxil, Prexeva) – A type of antidepressant called Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs). It can improve pain, fatigue, mood and sleep.
Newly mentioned medicines still under investigation for the treatment of fibromyalgia include:
Droxidopa (Northera) – A drug currently pending approval to treat Parkinson’s disease, could be used off-label for improving fibromyalgia symptoms.
Lacosamide (Vimpat) – An anticonvulsant drug currently in early trials, could be used off-label for improving fibromyalgia symptoms.
Reboxetine (Edronax) – A selective norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor (NRI) drug currently in trials for improving fibromyalgia symptoms.
Arthritis Today Magazine May-June 2012 Issue
Posted: April 26th, 2012 under Treatments.
Tags: arthritis to, Mary Anne Dunkin, Medicine, Restless Legs Syndrome
Comments
Comment from Kay
Time April 26, 2012 at 7:37 pm
Hi- have you heard anything about acetyl-L-carnitine for fibro symptoms?
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Comment from Maija Haavisto
Time April 26, 2012 at 10:50 pm
Lacosamide is actually already approved for epilepsy since 2008/2009, so it’s not “in early trials as an antiseizure medication”. I agree that it is a promising candidate for fibro.
Also, reboxetine is not an SNRI but an NRI. As such I don’t believe it is going to be as useful as SNRIs, even though it has demonstrated some efficacy in fibro. As an antidepressant it is considered to be one of the least effective, if not _the_ least effective one.
Kay: Acetyl-L-carnitine can be quite helpful, especially for fatigue, muscle weakness and sometimes cognitive problems, but usually not so much for pain.
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Comment from CmeBuzz
Time October 31, 2012 at 2:28 pm
This blog is great. We are amazed at all the topics that you share with your readers and your struggle with Fibromyalgia. It’s very important for doctors and nurses to learn more effective treatments to take better care of you and other patients diagnosed with Fibromyalgia. We are offering a great and free Webinar discussing how to improve Fibromyalgia treatment outcomes that is available through February 2013. We wish you luck, Felicia!
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Felicia Fibro Reply:
April 27th, 2012 at 12:18 am
Thanks for catching the typo of me adding the “S” to my abbreviation for reboxetine. I had the right term typed out in full, but had flubbed the abbreviation!
I’m not 100% sure what type of trials the writer was referring to when they wrote “…is in early trials” and after much searching online I still am not sure what it’d be in EARLY trials for, as it seems like most of their trials are further along.
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