“Quinine should not be considered a routine treatment for nocturnal leg cramps, and should only be considered when cramps cause regular disruption of sleep. Before use for nocturnal leg cramps, the risks should be carefully considered relative to the potential benefits. Quinine should only be considered:
when cramps are very painful or frequent
when other treatable causes of cramp have been ruled out
when non-pharmacological measures have not worked (eg, passive stretching exercises)”
Hi Mel. I used to get shocking leg cramps when I had cirrhosis and in my fingers when I played my guitar. Some nights I would be up for a couple of hours dancing round the bedroom. Sometimes I'd just get back in bed and it would start again. I asked my GP about Quinine tablets and he said that they could take up to 2 months to work and that there was no guarantee that they would work. I said that I drank tonic water and he said that I would have to drink a lot of it to equal one Quinine tablet. In the end I decided not to have the tablets because of that discussion ,plus I was already on a lot of medication. Thankfully when I had my transplant the cramp stopped. Hope they can get the pain stopped for you. All the best. Alf
Respectfully Mel woods, it probably isn't fibromyalgia, of which I was diagnosed about ten years ago. In fibro, there are trigger points that occur in pairs throughout the body.
I don't doubt the pain, or that you have fibro, l just don't think your leg cramps are fibromyalgia. Fibro feels more like an ache than a cramp. Perhaps you should see your gp?
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