Have you heard of lyrica for pain with scoliolsis?

Question

I have scoliosis and have had 2 lumbar lamenectomies. Degenerative joint disease is the reason. Also, have had anuerysm sugery in my brain. Have you ever heard of lyrica for treatment to scoliosis? Wondering why the side effects of dizziness are so disturbing.

Answer 1

I'm an RN who has taught nursing for over 25 years so my information comes from Medical and Pharmaceutical sources. I also have scoliosis and degenerative joint disease so I have some idea of what you have been going through. Lyrica, also known as Pregabalin is one of the newer medications used for the treatment of peripheral neuropathic pain as well as several other conditions which I will not go into since they don't specifically apply to you.. It is the degenerative joint disease that is putting pressure on some of your spinal nerve roots which is causing you the pain. You have not told me any information about your medication such as the dosage, number of times you take it per day, if it has relieved some of your pain, what side effects you are experiencing, etc. First of all I believe it to be an excellent medication for your medical problems and congratulate your physician for assisting you with some of the more recent Medical Protocol for your Orthopedic/Neurological problems. There are a number of things that you can discuss with your physician to fine-tune this medication. If you are taking this medication once per day maybe your physician will divide the amount of daily medication into 3 doses a day. Perhaps you can reduce the morning and afternoon doses (when you are up) and increase the bedtime dose. Lyrica can be taken with or without food so try taking your medicine with a meal. Each person on this medication has an individual patient response and tolerability. You can discuss briefly lowering your daily doses of this medicine with your physician and then gradually increasing the daily doses after a 7 day period so that your body adapts better to it. The most commonly reported adverse reactions (complaints) of Lyrica are dizziness and somnolence(sleepiness). The important thing to recognize while on this medication is the prevention of accidental injury (fall) due to dizziness or drowsiness. There are a number of things that can help with this including sitting up from a lying position for a minute or two before standing. While initially standing have something closeby that you can use for support such as a firm back chair, cane, table, etc., Wait until you have caught your balance before starting to walk. Wear comfortable preferrably flat shoes which are safer to walk in. Always take your time since many falls occur when a person was in a hurry. You may also find that your body gradually adjusts to the dizziness as your body learns to accomodate for balance as part of its homeostasis function. You do not mention if your are taking any other medications which of course would have to be considered in this equation also. Hopefully this information will give you some additional knowledge about Lyrica which you can discuss with your physician. Good luck to you and God Bless. P.S. don't forget to use a night light.

Answer 2

I have a patient on this medication (I am a physical therapist). She has significant scoliosis, however, in most people scoliosis is painless. It isn't until the scoliosis begins to alter the position of the vertebral disc (and causes herniation) or the neurforaemen becomes so narrow, it begins to compress a nerve. This is where Lyrica comes in. Lyrica is a drug which inhibts the release of neurotransmitters from nerves that are involved in the pain-response system. Although it's primary use is for diabetic neuropathy and pain associated with shingles (as well as focal seizures), one can see why it may be used in the case of someone with scoliosis who does experience neuropathic pain. Since this drug is a nervous system depressant, it depresses many areas of the nervous system and not just the peripheral nerves. Nervous system depressants are commonly associated with dizziness.

The current person I am thinking of has some mixed results with Lyrica. First of all, it is a very complicated case of chronic pain, mixed with someone who is obese and has uncontrolled anxiety, adult ADD and depression and with recent suicidal ideation. She does seem to be repsponding well to increased doses of Lyrica and responds better to her exercise program, yet she always seems a bit "out of sorts." She has returned to her job as an RN, but seems to have problems with "break through pain"...especially when she cannot take a few moments to perform her exercises.

So yes, I have heard of Lyrica in the treatment of someone with scoliosis, and dizziness is a common side effect of nervous system depressants.

Answer 3

Yes, I've heard of using Lyrica for this.
I give Lyrica out at my job, and I do not like the side effects that I see in my patients.
Dizziness, and shaking or tremors are common ones. Let your doctor know about this and maybe he or she will put you on something else.