Addiction Drug May Treat Fibromyalgia Pain

Fibromyalgia is a disease which causes chronic, and sometimes, severe pain for nearly 6 million Americans.

Now, a possible treatment has been found for that pain in a surprising source: naltrexone, a medication commonly used in the treatment of alcoholism and addiction to narcotics. [fibromyalgia treatment]

The medication worked so well that some of them were able to discontinue other medications they were using. Some returned to work. Overall, naltrexone was found to work 30 percent better than a placebo.

Not only did the medication relieve pain, but it also helped with the fatigue and stress which are common symptoms of the disease as well. In addition to working well, naltrexone is also relatively inexpensive, and has few side effects.[alcohol rehab]

But, it is cautioned that these results are preliminary, and further studies are necessary. Still, this represents a potentially important new tool for controlling the unremitting pain of fibromyalgia.

There is no known cure for fibromyalgia, nor is there currently any understanding of what causes this disease. Patients who suffer from fibromyalgia typically also suffer from other symptoms of the disease in addition to pain, which may include sleep disturbances, cerebrospinal fluid abnormalities, and hypersensitivity to heat and cold.