Fibromyalgia and Epilepsy Drug Lyrica Helps Restless Leg Sufferers, Researchers Say

Lyrica, the Pfizer drug for treatment of the chronic pain disorder fibromyalgia and preventing epileptic seizures, also appears to benefit people who cannot get to sleep because of restless legs syndrome, new findings suggest.

A recently completed clinical trial found that pregabalin, the active ingredient in Lyrica, is “a promising alternative to current treatments” in terms of helping people with restless legs syndrome get more quality sleep, according to research unveiled this week at a meeting of the American Academy of Neurology.

Lyrica for Fibromyalgia Pain

In 2007, Lyrica became the first FDA-approved treatment for fibromyalgia, a debilitating condition which affects as many as six million Americans, mostly adult women. Fibromyalgia victims tend to experience chronic or long-lasting pain as well as muscle stiffness and tenderness, the FDA said.

Restless legs syndrome is a neurological disorder which causes burning or tugging sensation in the legs, sometimes called parethesias or dysethesias, particularly when the person is lying down at rest. The sensations can range from uncomfortable to extremely painful.

Study of Restless Legs Sufferers

Researchers from the Sleep Research Institute in Madrid, Spain studied 58 patients who suffered from restless legs syndrome. The patients were given placebo pills for two weeks then half were given 150 to 600 milligrams daily doses of Lyrica, while half continued to receive placebos for another 12 weeks.

The researchers monitored the severity of restless legs syndrome and sleeping habits of both groups and found that those taking Lyrica experienced less severe symptoms of the syndrome.

Less Symptoms, More Sleep

Using the International Restless Legs Syndrome Rating Scale, people on Lyrica saw their scores on the disease severity index decline from 19.8 to 6.8, while scores for participants on placebo treatments declined from 21.5 to 11.2, the researchers said.

Also, people in the study who were taking Lyrica spent significantly more time sound asleep in what is called deep slow wave Stage 3 sleep and less time in light sleep, called state 1 or 2 sleep, compared to people not taking the drug, the researchers said.

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