Horizant Pros and Cons

[gordeo]

My doctor is wanting me to try Horizant. Currently I am taking .34mg of Kloponin but the side effects are bad, especially when I don't get much sleep. I seem to be especially sensitive to psychoactive drugs, what some would can a poor metabolizer.

I am afraid of any new drug's side effects. If I start at 300 mg, how bad will the side effects be. I know everyone is different, but in general, what can I expect.

This RLS (actually PLMD) is having a major, negative impact on my life. Thanks in advance

[Joolsg]

Horizant is only available in the USA ( we can’t get it here) and is a more readily absorbed version of Gabapentin. Everyone responds differently to the Alpha2delta ligands such as Horizant, Gabapentin and pregabalin. I didn’t respond well to Gabapentin as there were too many side effects but pregabalin worked better. All take 3 weeks to be fully effective and you should avoid magnesium 2 hours before or after as magnesium reduces effectiveness.

[lee_uk in reply to Joolsg]

Ah that might explain why my Gabapentin is not working at all, I've been taking a magnesium tablet with them

[Hidden]

Horizant is more likely to be effective for your RLS/PLMD than klonopin.

Horizant is gabapentin enacarbil which isn't available here in the UK, but I do take gabapentin which is.

The pros for it are -

- It can be effective for RLS and PLMD

- It can promote sleep and reduce anxiety.

- It is eliminated directly through the kidneys and isn't metabolised in the liver, thus doesn't damage the liver.

- It is eliminated quite fast compared to klonopin which has a half life of 30 hours so can make you drowsy through the day. The gabapentin, I take, has a half life of 5 - 7 hours.

- It doesn't cause augmentation like other RLS drugs that is, dopamine agonists.

The cons -

Although it's effective for RLS, it isn't quite as effective for PLMD as compared to dopamine agonists. However dopamine agonists have significant major risks, so aren't advisable.

It does have quite a few possible side effects, but not everybody gets them and not to the same degree.

Initial noticeable side effects are drowsiness, dizziness and walking problems. These usually fade after a while. If you take it only at night, they aren't really a problem.

Another side effect I suffer is slightly blurred vision, but it's not really a problem.

SOME people get more serious visual problems, put on weight or have more significant walking difficulty. It can cause depression. Ihave been taking it over 2 years without these.

There is a risk of respiratory problems with it, but only if you already have "central" respiratory depression for some reason.

The FDA do say that many people can be helped by gabapentin.as long as the benefit outweigh the side effects. I don't think you'll know that for yourself until.you try it.

[Tobias10]

My latest neurologist put me on Horizant which is a slow-release Gabapentin and was much more expensive than Gabapentin, plus I had to get health plan approval to even get it. I did not get any noticable relief from it and stopped using it after a month and went back to the Gabapentin capsules - I take 2 capsules 3-4 times a day and it seems to work much better than the Horizant did.

[lee_uk in reply to Tobias10]

May I ask how many mg's you are taking?

[Tobias10 in reply to lee_uk]

Gabapentin capsules are 300mg each - my PCP said 3600mg daily is the max recommended, so I have some wiggle room with it.

[BJamn]

Hi, I agree with Tobias10. I took Horizant for about a year. It is CRAZY expensive in the US and my insurance would not pay for it. The manufacturer had a coupon which helped for about 6 months but soon I will paying through the nose. I reverted back to 100 mg Gabapentin caps throughout the day. Currently I take 2 at lunch, 2 at dinner 1 around 7:30 and 1 at bedtime. If I have a dreaded RLS event in the night I have found if I take 1 more cap and an extra strength Tylenol I can get back to sleep.

[YodaDog]

Just to add to these posts that some people have claimed that gabapentin can cause hair loss or thinning.

[Joolsg in reply to YodaDog]

Yep- I lost about a third of my hair on Gabapentin & pregabalin but managed to reverse some loss with iron & folic acid supplements. Most side effects reduce after 2/3 months. I had worse side effects with Gabapentin so switched to pregabalin, although in the process of withdrawal- I only took it to counteract opioid induced panic attacks.

[Newtwig]

Anyone else having problems with swelling of upper and lower extremities with just 400mg of gabapentin?