Venlafaxine Extended Release in the Treatment of Post Herpetic Neuralgia: A Quasi-Experimental Study

Journal of Chittagong Medical College Teachers' Association Pub Date : 2021-09-01 DOI:10.3329/jcmcta.v32i1.66532

S. Afrose, Nazmul Hoque Munna, Md Mahfuzur Rahman, Humayon Kabir, N. Ahmed, A. Malek

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引用次数: 2

Abstract

Background: Anti depressant drugs are sometimes used to treat neuropathic pain like Postherpetic Neuralgia (PHN) however, their analgesic efficacy is unclear. Venlafaxine is a reasonably well tolerated anti depressant and is a Serotonin Norepinephrine Reuptake Inhibitor (SNRI) and weak noradrenaline reuptake inhibitor. Although not licensed for the treatment of chronic or neuropathic pain in most countries, it is sometimes used for this indication. The present study evaluated the efficacy, tolerability and Quality of Life (QoL) of venlafaxine use for 12 weeks in patients with PHN. Materials and methods: This quasi-experimental (Pretest-posttest design) was conducted in the department of Neurology, Dhaka Medical College Hospital, from July 2012 to June 2013. Four hundred and fifty two patients were included in the study and Venlafaxine extended release tablet (75 to 150 mg) were administeredfor 12 weeks. Pain severity score, pain interference score and QoL score were assessed by a self-rated questionnaire before treatment and at 12 weeks follow-up. Results: Majority of the patients were male (63.7%) with a mean age of 48.1 years. After 12 weeks of Venlafaxine treatment, 330 (73%) patients reported at least 50% relief in pain, whereas three (0.7%) patients did not report any pain relief. Pain was relieved completely in 32 (7.0%) patients. There was a significant decrease in the mean pain severity score, (5.8±2.0 versus 3.6±2.2) and meanpain interference score (4.5±2.0 versus 3.1±1.9) from baseline to 12 weeks. The mean QoL scale score improved significantly from 5.9±1.6 at baseline to 8.0±1.7 at week 12. Only 2.8% (13/452) patients experienced at least one adverse effect during the study period. Conclusion: Venlafaxine was found to be effective, safe and well tolerated in the patients of PHN for relieving pain and improving QoL. Further double blinded randomize study is needed to validate these findings. JCMCTA 2021 ; 32 (1) : 31-34

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文拉法辛缓释治疗疱疹后神经痛的准实验研究

背景:抗抑郁药物有时用于治疗带状疱疹后神经痛(PHN)等神经性疼痛，但其镇痛效果尚不清楚。文拉法辛是一种耐受性良好的抗抑郁药，是一种血清素-去甲肾上腺素再摄取抑制剂(SNRI)和弱去甲肾上腺素再摄取抑制剂。虽然在大多数国家未获许可用于治疗慢性或神经性疼痛，但有时也用于这一适应症。本研究评估了PHN患者使用文拉法辛12周的疗效、耐受性和生活质量(QoL)。材料与方法:本准实验(前测后测设计)于2012年7月至2013年6月在达卡医学院附属医院神经内科进行。研究纳入452例患者，给予文拉法辛缓释片(75 ~ 150mg) 12周。治疗前和随访12周采用自评问卷评估疼痛严重程度评分、疼痛干扰评分和生活质量评分。结果:患者以男性居多(63.7%)，平均年龄48.1岁。文拉法辛治疗12周后，330例(73%)患者报告疼痛缓解至少50%，而3例(0.7%)患者没有报告任何疼痛缓解。32例(7.0%)患者疼痛完全缓解。从基线到12周，平均疼痛严重程度评分(5.8±2.0比3.6±2.2)和平均疼痛干扰评分(4.5±2.0比3.1±1.9)显著下降。平均生活质量评分从基线时的5.9±1.6分显著提高到第12周时的8.0±1.7分。在研究期间，只有2.8%(13/452)的患者经历了至少一种不良反应。结论:文拉法辛治疗PHN患者有效、安全、耐受性好，可减轻疼痛，改善生活质量。需要进一步的双盲随机研究来验证这些发现。Jcmcta 2021;32 (1): 31-34

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Journal of Chittagong Medical College Teachers' Association

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