The symptoms of fibromyalgia can be almost unbearable, as can the symptoms of recovering from heroin addiction. However, there is a drug that is commonly used for the treatment of heroin addicts that seems to also be effective at easing the symptoms of fibromyalgia.
As we already know, fibromyalgia as a very misunderstood and possibly debilitation condition that is thought to affect around 12 million people in the United States alone- that is about four percent of the population- according to one small pilot study. Fibromyalgia keeps you from getting good quality sleep, which makes your symptoms worse- it’s a constant and vicious cycle. However, naltrexone seems to be helping some individuals.
Drug to Treat Fibromyalgia
According to Jarred Younger, a researcher in the field of pain at Stanford University School of Medicine, it seems as though a medication has been discovered that has very few side effects and seems to be quite effective for reducing fatigue and pain in those individuals who are suffering from fibromyalgia.
Jarred is also the co-author of this study. He believes that this is a proven and effective treatment that physicians can add to their list of treatments for the condition of fibromyalgia. However, one thing he does caution for is that longer studies that look at more individuals must be done in order to find confirmation for these results.
What is Fibromyalgia?
The condition of Fibromyalgia, also called FMS, is a very mysterious disorder that is characterized by symptoms of widespread pain, sleep disorders, depression, fatigue, and anxiety. Typically, this condition appears somewhere between the ages of thirty-four and fifty-three. You should also know that the condition is much more common in women than in men.
In fact, if affects around five percent of women and only 1.6 percent of men in the United States- according to researchers. The FDA, or Food and Drug Administration, has only approved three drugs at this time to treat fibromyalgia. However, it seems as though most individuals do not respond to these drugs, according to Jarred Younger.
The Pilot Study
For approximately fourteen weeks, Jarred Younger, and Sean Mackey- his college and chief of the Pain Management Division at Stanford University School of Medicine observed the fibromyalgia of ten women between the ages of twenty-two and fifty-five. They were monitored before, during, and after taking very small doses- only 4.5 mg each day- on naltrexone. For approximately three decades, this medication has been used to wean drug addicts off drugs such as heroin and other street drugs.
How does Naltrexone Work?
Naltrexone latches on to the nerve cell receptors that heroin and other opioids would try to latch onto. This blocks their ability to do so and cause a feeling of being high. The women were able to report on the severity of their symptoms each day on a scale of one to one hundred, using specialized handheld computers.
Every two weeks, the women would visit the researchers and have their data downloaded into the main computers. Then, the researchers ran tests measuring the pain thresholds of the women through heat, cold, and pressure applied to their skin.
The Findings of the Study
The findings of the study were that the symptoms of fibromyalgia such as pain and fatigue actually decreased by about thirty percent while the women were taking the naltrexone, as compared to the times they were taking a placebo. There were only a few side effects reported, none detrimental. Two women said the naltrexone gave them very vivid dreams and one said that she experienced vomiting and nausea the first few nights.
Jarred Younger agrees with most researchers that the condition of fibromyalgia is an autoimmune disorder. An autoimmune disorder is one in which immune system of the body begins to attack its own healthy tissue. It is suspected that the naltrexone is effective for treating fibromyalgia because it is not just blocking the nerve cell receptors, but is also putting a damper on the activity of the microglia.
The microglia are the immune cells that are located in the spinal cord and the brain. These immune cells produce cytokines that promote inflammation by exciting the nerve cells that are responsible for creating pain sensations.
The results of this study by Jarred Younger and Sean Mackey are extremely promising, according to an anesthesiologist named Dan Clauw, who is based at the Chronic Pain and Fatigue Research Center located at the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor. Dan Clauw was not involved in this study in any way.
Still, though he says the results are promising, he’s not convinced of their reasons why it works. He actually believes that it works by suppressing the immunity cells. Additionally, he believes that very low doses of this medication actually stimulate an individual’s nerve cells to release endorphins- which help to reduce pain.
The point of the matter is that it works. Though they’re not sure how exactly it works, all researchers and scientists do agree that more research will be necessary before these findings can officially be confirmed. The team at Stanford University School of Medicine is already in the middle of a twenty-four week study that is following forty individuals. Jarred Younger has not yet begun to analyze the data yet, but he does say that the participants in the study seem to be happy and everything looks good.
Further reading:
Heroin Addiction Drug May Relieve Symptoms of Fibromyalgia: http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/fibromyalgia-experimental-treatment-naltrexone/
Would you have Heroin abuse (Drug abuse) when you have Fibromyalgia?http://www.ehealthme.com/cs/fibromyalgia/heroin+abuse
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