People who live with chronic lower back pain understand all too well what it’s like not to be believed half the time and not to be able to control the pain much of the time. However, researchers are dedicating a lot of time and resources into finding ways to manage chronic pain of many types, including lower back pain.

A study presented at the European Federation of International Association for the Study of Pain Chapters (EFIC), researchers showed that of 181 patients who were living with chronic lower back pain, the majority who took Cymbalta reported less pain and this reduced pain lasted for the 41 weeks of the study.

The trial was an open label trial, which meant that everyone knew what they were taking, unlike a blinded study, which took place for 13 weeks before the open label, when patients were given a placebo or the study medication.

After the 13-week blinded study, the patients were divided into groups where one group received 60 mg of the medication and the other 120 mg. This was to see how long the effects of pain relief would last.

The patients who had received the Cymbalta during the initial 13-week trial were given the same dose that they were taking then and those patients who were on the placebo during the 13-week trial were switched to Cymbalta.

Fifty-eight of the 13-week study patients responded well to the Cymbalta, so researchers followed them to see if their response to the medication would continue over the 41 weeks. What the researchers found was that not only did the patients who responded in the 13 weeks continue to respond later, many of them saw their pain decrease even more.

This finding is promising and may mean that many people can be helped find pain relief. Of course, like all medications, Cymbalta is not recommended for everyone and only your doctor will be able to tell you may be a candidate for it.

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Post from: Blisstree

Cymbalta Helping with Low Chronic Back Pain

Cymbalta Reduces Pain and Improves Functioning in Fibromyalgia Patients

INDIANAPOLIS, June 16 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ — The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved Cymbalta(R) (duloxetine HCl) for the management of fibromyalgia, a chronic widespread pain disorder, Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE: LLY) announced today. Cymbalta is the first serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor with proven efficacy for reducing pain inpatients with fibromyalgia. The fibromyalgia indication represents thesecond FDA-approved use for Cymbalta for a pain disorder, demonstrating the medication’s analgesic effect.

“The approval of Cymbalta is important because it provides physicians and patients with a new treatment option shown to help reduce pain and improve functioning in this difficult-to-treat disorder,” said Madelaine Wohlreich, M.D., medical advisor and research physician at Lilly.

The cause of fibromyalgia remains unknown; however, scientists believe it may be related to some combination of changes in brain and spinal cord chemistry, genetics and stress. Some researchers believe fibromyalgia is a disorder of increased sensitivity to pain. Although the way Cymbalta works in people is not fully known, medical experts believe it increases the activity of two naturally occurring substances called serotonin and norepinephrine. These substances aid communication in many areas of the brain and spinal cord that affect emotion. Research also suggests that these substances are part of the body’s natural pain-suppressing system. “The FDA approval of Cymbalta for the management of fibromyalgia is another important step in the efforts to ensure that people with fibromyalgia will have the availability of effective medications to help reduce the chronic, widespread pain of this life-altering disorder,” said Lynne Matallana, president of the National Fibromyalgia Association and a fibromyalgia patient.

Fibromyalgia is estimated to affect 2 percent of the U.S. population – approximately 5 million people – the majority of those diagnosed being women. The disorder is characterized by chronic widespread pain and tenderness. Some patients may have additional symptoms. Although there is no known cure for fibromyalgia, some physicians recommend a comprehensive care plan that can include education, medication, and lifestyle changes to help manage the symptoms of the disorder.

“In fibromyalgia, there is no one-size-fits-all approach to managing the disorder,” said Dan Clauw, M.D., professor of medicine in the University of Michigan’s Division of Rheumatology and director of the Chronic Pain and Fatigue Research Center at the University of Michigan.

The approval marks the fourth disorder that the FDA has approved for Cymbalta. In addition to fibromyalgia, Cymbalta is approved for the management of diabetic peripheral neuropathic pain (DPNP) and the treatment of major depressive disorder and generalized anxiety disorder, all in adults age 18 years and older.

Additional important changes have been made to the Cymbalta prescribing information, including updates to the Warnings and Precautions section. Full prescribing information can be found at http://www.cymbalta.com.

SOURCE Eli Lilly and Company

Post from: Blisstree

Press Release: FDA Approves Cymbalta for Management of Fibromyalgia