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  • Reaction to Gabapentin/Neurontin?

    Hi all -- I'm posting to see if anyone has had an allergic reaction to Gabapentin (generic Neurontin). I have been taking Gabapentin since having had surgery in April 2012, which left me with sciatica-like pain in my left hip and left foot/ankle area. I am currently on a very low dose of 100 mg a day and with that, it has kept my pain under pretty good control. Feel a little soreness in hip, and sensations in the ankle from time to time, but I am totally functional, working since May. Just yesterday, however, noticed my face is a little puffy, especially under my eyes. Of course, with this you sort of have to be your own detective to figure out what is causing it. I took a Benadryl and stopped the Neurontin for now.

    So my question is -- has anyone had a similar reaction to the Gabapentin? I would appreciate if you could post your experience, and thanks very much.

  • #2
    I doubt it is the gabapentin causing your allergy, or it would have showed up a long time ago. Also, I'm not sure if you are supposed to stop that abruptly. Might want to look at the label. Just my uneducated 2 cents. Best of luck figuring it out!

    Evelyn
    age 48
    80* thoracolumbar; 40* thoracic
    Reduced to ~16* thoracolumbar; ~0* thoracic
    Surgery 3/14/12 with Dr. Lenke in St. Louis, T4 to S1 with pelvic fixation
    Broken rods 12/1/19; scheduled for revision fusion L1-L3-4 with Dr. Lenke 2/4/2020
    Not "confused" anymore, but don't know how to change my username.

    Comment


    • #3
      Hii SUSAN

      Hi Susan,
      I had a problem with gabapentin. I have been on it for almost 2 years. I have a raw nerve in my chest from my second spine surgery. It seems as if gabapentin can cause water retention. I was having a problem loosing my balance and one leg getting weaker. The dr tried lyrica{which I had a reation to},then we tried a lower dose of gabapentin. It is better with that dose.
      You do need to be careful about stopping the medication. It can cause you a problem if not tapered down.
      When we tapered the dose down--I lost alot of water and my blood pressure came down too.
      T10-pelvis fusion 12/08
      C5,6,7 fusion 9/10
      T2--T10 fusion 2/11
      C 4-5 fusion 11/14
      Right scapulectomy 6/15
      Right pectoralis major muscle transfer to scapula
      To replace the action of Serratus Anterior muscle 3/16
      Broken neck 9/28/2018
      Emergency surgery posterior fusion C4- T3
      Repeated 11/2018 because rods pulled apart added T2 fusion
      Removal of partial right thoracic hardware 1/2020
      Removal and replacement of C4-T10 hardware with C7 and T 1
      Osteotomy

      Comment


      • #4
        Evelyn,

        Sometimes allergies show up late. I was taking amoxicillin on a few occasions after dental procedures and never had problems, but one day got hives from it. It was clearly from this drug - nothing else could have caused it. I could not understand why I never had this reaction before and how come it happened now. The dentist said he'd seen it quite often when people develop an allergic reaction to medicine that worked before just out of blue. Go figure.
        I am stronger than scoliosis, and won't let it rule my life!
        45 years old - diagnosed at age 7
        A/P surgery on March 5/7, 2013 - UCSF

        Comment


        • #5
          i believe an allergy to a drug can happen at ANY time, including after
          one has been taking the drug for a while...
          happened to my mother with penicillin, and to me with Vioxx (before
          they took it off the market)

          jess

          Comment


          • #6
            Thanks all for the responses. My dose is already at the lowest, 100 mg., you cannot get a smaller dose than that, and I was only taking one pill a day. My face is still swollen a bit, hopefully it will go down, but I don't think it will get worse at this point. Anyway, thanks everyone, I do appreciate it.

            Comment


            • #7
              susan...i did not want to stop Vioxx when i was on it...
              it was one of the few things that helped with pain at the time...
              i broke out in hives, thought it was stress, as my father was sick
              at the time...i went back to taking Vioxx...and it cut off my breatheing
              and almost killed me...
              please be very careful if you are still taking it!!! drug allergies can
              be very dangerous...fast!

              jess...& Sparky

              Comment


              • #8
                No problem with cold turkey quitting neurontin. It does not have to be titrated.
                Never argue with an idiot. They always drag you down to their level, and then they beat you with experience. --Twain
                ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                Surgery 2/10/93 A/P fusion T4-L3
                Surgery 1/20/11 A/P fusion L2-sacrum w/pelvic fixation

                Comment


                • #9
                  Neurontin is an anti-seizure medication that just happens to have the side effect of decreasing nerve pain. If you read the label for it, it DOES have to be titrated down otherwise can cause seizures. I took it for a few months. I was also on the lowest dose. Because I was on the lowest dose, I didn't have to titrate down, either. I would call your doctor with this question just to be safe. Please be careful. If you have any weird sensations, please call your doctor.
                  Be happy!
                  We don't know what tomorrow brings,
                  but we are alive today!

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    Side effects from weaning off Neurontin

                    Just a warning for Neurontin users - Daughter experienced awful nausea (seasick) while weaning off Neurontin over a 4 week period. It was so bad that we called our pharmacist, who confirmed that often happens & had her take Dramamine to help. (She manages her fibro/Epstein-Barre pain through diet & exercise rather than any more drugs as they caused more harm than good).
                    Last edited by LSKOCH5; 03-25-2013, 07:45 PM.
                    Mom of 14yo son diagnosed Oct 2011
                    Surgery 1/3/12 w Dr. Geof Cronen,
                    Tampa General Hospital T3 to L1
                    Jacob's pre surg curves: T58 & L31 12/28/11
                    photos & xrays in "First-Time Surgery" thread "Before & After"

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      Originally posted by rohrer01 View Post
                      Neurontin is an anti-seizure medication that just happens to have the side effect of decreasing nerve pain. If you read the label for it, it DOES have to be titrated down otherwise can cause seizures. I took it for a few months. I was also on the lowest dose. Because I was on the lowest dose, I didn't have to titrate down, either. I would call your doctor with this question just to be safe. Please be careful. If you have any weird sensations, please call your doctor.
                      Yikes, sorry for the bad info. I was told I could cold turkey it (which I did, without incident).

                      --Linda
                      Never argue with an idiot. They always drag you down to their level, and then they beat you with experience. --Twain
                      ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                      Surgery 2/10/93 A/P fusion T4-L3
                      Surgery 1/20/11 A/P fusion L2-sacrum w/pelvic fixation

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        Oral Gabapentin and I did not get along well. It caused major gastric issues while on it and the first few weeks off of it. I know many doctors automatically put a patient on it to head off the nerve pain, but everyone reacts differently to medication.

                        I am luck to work for a physician for we are about to venture down a new road for me (since I refuse all oral meds except vitamins) which is a topical compound mixed to aide in the left over nerve pain that I have. It is being made through Trilogy Pharmacy and includes a topical Gabapentin. We shall see how it works. The company should have it made in about a week and we can go back and tweak it as we go to get better results if needed.

                        As far as any of the oral medications that we tend to be exposed to after surgery, they can be a help and a hindrance and my personal goal was I never want to become reliant upon medications to help me function. But also as time goes by (now three months post-op) things get a little easier every day.

                        Tamena
                        Diagnosed at age 12 with a double major curve

                        Braced till age 15

                        SSBOB T12-L2 Anterior age 34. (October 22,2012) Dr. Robert Gaines Jr. ( Columbia, MO)

                        Revision Surgery T2-Sacrum with Pelvic Fixation Prosterior age 35 (November 13,2013) Dr. Michael Kelly (St. Louis, MO)

                        Revision Surgery L4/L5 due to BMP Complication age 36 (November 20,2014) Dr. Michael Kelly (St. Louis, Mo)

                        Revision Surgery due to broken rod scheduled for October 19, 2016 with Dr. Michael Kelly (St. Louis, MO)

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          I was on Gabapentin and Dilaudid combo for a short time. I ran off the road twice going home one night when I sort of either fell asleep for a few seconds or had some sort of lapse. Very scared.

                          Needless to say, now off Gabapentin.

                          Susan
                          Last edited by susancook; 01-26-2013, 07:56 PM.
                          Adult Onset Degen Scoliosis @65, 25* T & 36* L w/ 11.2 cm coronal balance; T kyphosis 90*; Sev disc degen T & L stenosis

                          2013: T3- S1 Fusion w/ ALIF L4-S1/XLIF L2-4, PSF T4-S1 2 surgeries
                          2014: Hernia @ ALIF repaired; Emergency screw removal SCI T4,5 sec to PJK
                          2015: Rev Broken Bil T & L rods and no fusion: 2 revision surgeries; hardware P. Acnes infection
                          2016: Ant/Lat Lumbar diskectomy w/ 4 cages + BMP + harvested bone
                          2018: Removal L4,5 screw
                          2021: Removal T1 screw & rod

                          Comment


                          • #14
                            Originally posted by susancook View Post
                            I was on Gabapentin and Dilaudid combo for a short time. I ran off the road twice going home one night when I sort of either fell asleep for a few seconds or had some sort of lapse. Very scared.

                            Needless to say, now off Gabapentin.

                            Susan
                            I would blame that more on the dilaudid, aka hydromorphone. This is a very powerful narcotic.
                            Be happy!
                            We don't know what tomorrow brings,
                            but we are alive today!

                            Comment


                            • #15
                              Originally posted by rohrer01 View Post
                              I would blame that more on the dilaudid, aka hydromorphone. This is a very powerful narcotic.
                              After I went off the Gabapentin, I was fine, that is, never had another problem with falling asleep while driving. Maybe it was the combination of the two and the Dilaudid was mostly to blame. Surprisingly the Dilaudid never made me feel sedated and unfortunately did not help my pain, so I stopped taking it. Now, I am on Lyrica without problem. I did take the Lyrica with the Dilaudid for a short time without problem.
                              Susan
                              Adult Onset Degen Scoliosis @65, 25* T & 36* L w/ 11.2 cm coronal balance; T kyphosis 90*; Sev disc degen T & L stenosis

                              2013: T3- S1 Fusion w/ ALIF L4-S1/XLIF L2-4, PSF T4-S1 2 surgeries
                              2014: Hernia @ ALIF repaired; Emergency screw removal SCI T4,5 sec to PJK
                              2015: Rev Broken Bil T & L rods and no fusion: 2 revision surgeries; hardware P. Acnes infection
                              2016: Ant/Lat Lumbar diskectomy w/ 4 cages + BMP + harvested bone
                              2018: Removal L4,5 screw
                              2021: Removal T1 screw & rod

                              Comment

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