Can Lyrica Replace Opiates For Pain Management?

These days it's common for FM doctors to deny patients opiates on the grounds that studies have proven opiates to be ineffective against pain relief for FM. I've been unable to find any study supporting this that was not partly funded by Pfizer. This is problematic because Pfizer was convicted earlier this year of violating federal racketeering laws for it's marketing practices, which included making false claims about the effectiveness and lack of negative side effects of certain of its drugs.

Perhaps you could help in this research. The next time a doctor tells you opiates have been proven ineffective against FM pain relief, ask: Do you know of any study supporting your position that was not funded by racketeers?

Has anyone found Lyrica to be an effective replacement for opiates?

Please share your experiences on this issue with our community.

REPLY

REPORT

For some people, yes, Lyrica is very effective for pain relief. The caveat, however, is that it only works for neuropathic pain and, as with any medication, there are other people, for whom, it doesn't work at all.

The same can be said of opiates, they are very effective for some people, but there are others who get no relief from them.

This is perfectly normal when it comes to prescription drugs.

Suggesting that people mention the racketeering thing to their doctors is, more than likely, not going to do any good, at all. I am afraid that most will find that their doctors don't follow such developments and will not have any idea what they are talking about.

The best suggestion is to get a new doctor, if they one you currently have is not helping you get proper pain relief.

https:/­/­rxchat.com/­wiki/­Lyrica/­

Are there any questions or comments?

REPLY

Was this helpful? 0

Your comment, The same can be said of opiates, they are very effective for some people, but there are others who get no relief from them, is quite correct, and many clinical studies support that fact.

The problem is that many doctors are now saying that opiates are never effective for FM pain in anyone, at any dosage (and only offer expensive and risky drugs in their place). They say this to people who have found opiates to be the only effective pain relief, and who have been using opiates successfully for years, even decades. As Carl Sagan put it, extraordinary claims require extraordinary proof. A patient has a right to expect that decisions concerning their treatment are be based on credible evidence,and they have a right to know if they are not.

If the doctor is truly ignorant of Pfizer’s racketeering conviction, and the conviction of Dr. Scott Reuben for faking the studies on which the whole concept of “anti-depressants as pain relievers” is based, the doctor needs to know, and before they wind up in court for malpractice, or kill someone, or both. If they do know and continue to base prescriptions on studies proven to be false, a patient has every reason to find another doctor, but the current doctor should be told why. They won’t change their approach until it hits them in their wallet.

Leaving a doctor’s practice for another without telling the doctor why will not encourage them to change, and we need to change a lot of doctors. It has been estimated that 80% of the doctors in this country are receiving some kind of handout from the drug companies. (A recent study on NPR estimated that for every $2000 a doctor receives from a drug company, they prescribe $200,000 of that company’s drugs.) We can’t depend on 20% of the doctors in the country to provide all our health needs.

Ultimately, until we limit the corruption in the health care system, we will never be able to limit its costs, or its risks.

REPLY

Was this helpful? 1

I'm sorry to tell you but Lyricia doesn't do anything, unless you have FM. My doc gave me Lyricia because of the uselessness of oxy's. He said to take them for break though pain. Excuse me, but I am in pain now 24/7 like I said before. It just makes me very sleeply and I don't want to sleep just because I am in pain. So the bottom line is unless you have FM, forget it. It's just another way of our doc trying to appease us that have pain and need the old oxy's back.

REPLY

Was this helpful? 0

I do know one person who found Lyrica to be effective for pain, and they have diabetes. Everyone else I know who tried it either found it totally inert (they were the lucky ones) or had serious problems with it.

Hope you feel better.

REPLY

Was this helpful? 0

I've had Postherpetic Neuralgia for the past 7 years. It's from a bad case of Shingles that damaged the nerves around my left side....so bad I can barely stand the brush of a shirt or bed sheet. I've tried so many drugs I can't remember them all but what I've gotten the most relief from is a combination of Lyrica and Methadone. I have taken megadoses of Lyrica in the past but I'm now taking 1800 mgs/day(yes, I know that's above the recommended dose) and about 50 mgs/day of Methadone. The bad part is Insurance will only cover 600/mgs per day most of the time so the rest is out-of-pocket. And as far as I know the Patent runs out late next year(10/2013) so maybe we can get a Generic version. This may only work with my kind of nerve pain but maybe it's worth a try for some of you. I hope all of you find a way to get relief from your pain.

REPLY

Was this helpful? 1

ALL PAIN SUFFERS LIKE ME BEING MISTREATED AND UNDER-MEDICATED LOSING MEDS. GO TO THE WHITE HOUSE'S WEB SITE: WE THE ...

15 REPLIES

I need to find find a docor but noone will treat me I was doing fine on mscontin 40 mg three times a day and ms contin 1...

17 REPLIES

I have been taking various opiates for pain management for about four years now. Pain management for me has been a very ...

2 REPLIES

Anderson Indiana I recently had a elbow replacement surgery I need to find a pain management doctor can anybody help ## ...

1 REPLY

I've been on methadone for almost 13 yrs due to a car accident when I was a teenager that left me disabled and with ...

16 REPLIES

Recently Lyrica has been added to my pain management program. I purchased the drug, but haven't yet began taking it ...

2 REPLIES

I went to er and got pain Meds in another state will pain management know ## Hello, Sebas! How are you? Yes, if it was a...

1 REPLY

My physician has suggested using this steroid in conjunction with my marcaine injections into my paravertebral lumber ne...

1 REPLY

My father is 84 years old and he is a very “tough man” that has an extremely high tolerance to pain. Over th...

22 REPLIES

What are the best medications to treat fibromyalgia? I am always hurting somewhere on my body. Especially my back, knees...

10 REPLIES