RLS (pain) and Insomnia

[montypande]

I am from India. A friend here in India has severe RLS Symptoms. We read some posts abt buprenorphine working for some people.

1) Are there any RLS Sufferers from India on this forum? Need help. Have following Questions

2) Can u share whom do u consult (name of doctor if possible)? As we r not able to find doctors very knowledgeable expert/ knowledgeable in this field.

3) Any known doctor in India who has already prescribed buprenorphine tab for RLS to anyone?

4) If doctor in India refuses to prescribe buprenorphine, any abroad doc that can be consulted online by us and will his prescription be valid?

Another Set of Questions:

5) Temgesic or other buprenorphine tablet not available with chemist shops...how to get?

only buprenorphine patch might be available (not sure though)...if so, will it be effective?

6) Which is better, pregabalin or Gabapentin, for RLS. What r their drawbacks? Augmentation occurs with them too? I read so many saying they had to eventually leave them too...so is it worth even trying them? I m too exhausted n weak to try things that don't work

7)By the way, Buvalor 5mg patch is exorbitantly unaffordable. Rs 1400 for one patch. How long would one such 5 mg patch last?

Please Help as soon as possible.

[Madlegs1]

I would have thought Buprenorphin would be easily available in India, from any street corner"pharmacy". I was able to get most meds when my back pack went " missing" a few years ago.

Good luck. Tashi.

[LotteM]

Sorry, can't be of much help. There is/ used to be however at least one person from India on this forum. Her username eludes me at the moment. Maybe use the search function to search for 'India', as she has mentioned it several times.

[Munroist]

Pregabalin and gabapentin are relatively safe drugs and don’t tend to cause addiction or major withdrawal issues so if they are available and you are severely impacted by RLS and not sleeping, then I can’t see you have much to lose by trying them. If they work then you may get some rest and a breathing space to consider what the next steps are, if they don’t work then they are not difficult to stop although like most drugs coming off them in stages is probably advisable. The problem with RLS is that it’s not well understood and there are no specific medications developed for it and those which are used are because they seem to work for some people in some situations.

[dklohrey]

I have taken both gabapentin (1200mg daily) and pregabalin (300mg daily) for rls, though not at the same time. The results have been about the same. Just ok, not great. Neither seem to have any side effects for me. Living in the U.S., both drugs are readily available through our local pharmacies, though pregabalin is considered a controlled substance, so a bit more likely to be abused.

[Shumbah]

What a lovely friend you are helping your friend with this disgusting horrific disease I have just responded to Ejaji on this site is that your friend ?