We are always looking for what does and doesn't work
for this condition. But we have never had anyone else
report such positive results from a drug before. One
member said Lyrica was the best medication she ever
took for P.S., but it wasn't enough relief by itself
and she went on to try other treatments. Does anyone
else have experience with this drug?? Please share!

I must admit Karen's posting sounded like "Viral
Marketing" to me (See
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Viral_marketing) and I
suspect we will never hear from her again.

Personally, I can now manage the pain with manual
therapies. But I remember when I was desperate enough
to try any drug offered. I suffered for years with
debilitating side effects from excessively high
dosages of anti-depressants prescribed for pain. So
now I am very leery of the latest drug being pushed
by big pharma and the Pain Mgmt. crowd.

Lyrica has only been on the market for a couple of
years. New drugs are tested in a relatively small
number of people before being released, and serious
adverse effects or life-threatening drug interactions
may not be detected until the new drug has been taken
by hundreds of thousands of people. A number of new
drugs have been withdrawn within their first seven
years after release. So I try to stay away from the
new drugs, plus they are SO expensive.

Lyrica belongs to the same family as gabapentin
(Neurontin) and I remember that scandal. And it is a
controlled substance with a potential for abuse.

Weight gain is a well known side effect of this drug.
So anyone taking it should watch their diet to
minimize weight gain, if possible.

According to WorstPills.org, risks involved
statistically significant increases in visual
abnormalities in patients using pregabalin as well as
increased numbers of accidental injuries and edema.
For blurred vision, there was a 4.3-fold increase in
pregabalin users compared with those taking a placebo
and for double vision, a 6.7 fold increase. Accidental
injuries occurred nine times more frequently in
pregabalin users. One possible explanation for the
increased injuries is significant increases in
dizziness and abnormal gait in people using
pregabalin.

Patients taking pregabalin should start with the
lowest recommended dose. If necessary, the prescribing
physician should increase the dose gradually. Be
advised that it takes at least one week to experience
a decrease in pain. For neuropathic pain, doses of 600
mg have more adverse effects and no additional benefit
occurs compared to doses of 300 mg. People with kidney
problems or on dialysis may need dose adjustments. If
stopping, follow your doctor’s instructions to lower
the dose of pregabalin gradually over a week.
Otherwise, seizures may occur. There have been reports
of brain swelling due to abrupt stopping of pregabalin.



________________________________________________________________________________\
____
Luggage? GPS? Comic books?
Check out fitting gifts for grads at Yahoo! Search
http://search.yahoo.com/search?fr=oni_on_mail&p=graduation+gifts&cs=bz