Gabapentin withdrawal has previously been shown to present with symptoms of anxiety, diaphoresis, palpitations, agitation, and migraine headaches. 1 With a half-life of 5–7 hours, onset of symptoms secondary to gabapentin withdrawal can occur between 12 hours and 7 days after discontinuing the medication. 2 In our case, the patient began There have been numerous documented cases of gabapentin abuse, dependence, and withdrawal. Even though gabapentin is sometimes considered as a treatment option for alcohol and substance abuse, it is important to monitor for drug-seeking behaviors. A history of alcohol or substance abuse appears to b Gabapentin is an anticonvulsive medication that received approval from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in 1993 and has been available in generic form in the USA since 2004. Gabapentin was originally used as a muscle relaxant and an anti-spasmodic. However, it was later discovered that gabapentin has the potential of an anticonvulsive medication and can be used as an adjunct to more Data Sources: A PubMed literature search (1993 to October 2015) was performed using the search terms gabapentin, withdrawal, dependence, and addiction. Additional references were identified from a review of literature citations. Gabapentin withdrawal has been reported infrequently, suggesting there may be predisposing conditions for a withdrawal syndrome. AB and an older adult in a previous case report experienced withdrawal despite gabapentin taper. Only those articles written in English that described occurrences of gabapentin misuse/abuse among human populations were included. Studies describing only gabapentin toxicity, withdrawal, or dependence without misuse/abuse were excluded, as were articles describing only pregabalin misuse/abuse. Clinicians should be aware of possible withdrawal symptoms from drugs such as gabapentin, administered to mothers during pregnancy. We also encourage the gradual tapering of gabapentin in neonates over weeks to months similar to the adult population. Objective: To review the literature evaluating gabapentin for alcohol withdrawal and dependence. Data sources: A literature search of MEDLINE (1966 to end of March 2015) and PubMed was performed using the terms alcohol, gabapentin, withdrawal, and dependence. Additional references were identified from a review of literature citations. Study selection and data extraction: English-language A patient developed apparent withdrawal symptoms beginning two days after gabapentin therapy was discontinued. The symptoms were unresponsive to treatment with benzodiazepines but completely resolved with the reinitiation of gabapentin therapy. Gabapentin has been widely used to manage post-herpetic neuralgia, peripheral neuropathy, seizure disorders, alcohol use disorder (AUD), alcohol withdrawal, and insomnia. Although usually well tolerated, gabapentin has been reported to cause severe physiologic dependence and withdrawal. Tapering gab A patient developed apparent withdrawal symptoms beginning two days after gabapentin therapy was discontinued. The symptoms were unresponsive to treatment with benzodiazepines but completely resolved with the reinitiation of gabapentin therapy. Gabapentin (GBP) has gained wide acceptance in the treatment of pain, migraine, bipolar illness, and epilepsy. It has a relatively benign side effect profile, lacks significant drug interactions, is not liver metabolized, and is renally excreted. Herein three cases are presented that demonstrate wit A systematic review and meta-analysis were conducted to examine if gabapentin can effectively replace/reduce the use of benzodiazepines for the treatment of acute alcohol withdrawal symptoms in hospitalized patients. Time to alcohol withdrawal symptom resolution, amount of benzodiazepines administered, rate of resolution of alcohol withdrawal symptoms, serious withdrawal-related complications Gabapentin, an anticonvulsant, neuroleptic, and pain medication, is widely used in both adults and children for management of epilepsy, bipolar illness, and neuropathic pain. Gabapentin use has also been recommended for hyperemesis gravidarum and restless leg syndrome in pregnant mothers. Gabapentin withdrawal syndrome in the presence of a taper. Bipolar Disord 2005; 7 (03) 302-304 Crossref PubMed Search in Google Scholar 5 Barrueto F Jr, Green J, Howland MA, Hoffman RS, Nelson LS. Gabapentin withdrawal presenting as status epilepticus. J Toxicol Clin Toxicol 2002; 40 (07) 925-928 Crossref PubMed Search in Google Scholar A comprehensive literature search of PubMed and related databases was performed for this project, using multiple combinations of search terms to yield human laboratory and clinical studies assessing the therapeutic potential of gabapentin for alcohol use disorder. Past reports have suggested that some withdrawal symptoms can present after 1-2 days upon abrupt discontinuation of gabapentin after chronic use within young to middle-aged patients. These symptoms mimic that of alcohol and benzodiazepine withdrawal purportedly due to a similar mechanism of action. Methods: A systematic review and meta-analysis were conducted to examine if gabapentin can effectively replace/reduce the use of benzodiazepines for the treatment of acute alcohol withdrawal symptoms in hospitalized patients. Time to alcohol withdrawal symptom resolution, amount of benzodiazepines administered, rate of resolution of alcohol withdrawal symptoms, serious withdrawal-related Early initiation of high-dose gabapentin was associated with a significant reduction in benzodiazepine exposure, faster stabilization of alcohol withdrawal-related symptoms, and shorter hospital length of stay. Future studies evaluating gabapentin's effect on long-term safety and hospital readmissio These findings were similar for other drinking variables, where gabapentin was more efficacious than placebo in the high-alcohol withdrawal group only. Gabapentin caused more dizziness, but this did not affect efficacy.
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