Tapentadol

[Danni54]

Has anybody else tried Tapentadol for RLS ? Despite having , at last , persuaded the Pain Clinic Consultant to give me a month's trial for Buprenorphine tablet's, they are , still, considering giving me Tapentadol! I would be grateful for any input. Also, are there any problems to look out for changing from the Buprenorphine patch to the tablet's? I am sooo looking forward to not having the itch from the patch any more and clawing my skin under the patch ! I have ordered some cream from the Pharmacy link which Sue gave me but will, hopefully, get the tablet's on Monday when my Dr. comes back from holiday! Thanks in advance! All the best, Danni

[SueJohnson]

The problem with Tapentadol is that it only lasts 4 to 6 hours so unless you take it that often you may suffer mini withdrawals.

[Danni54 in reply to SueJohnson]

Thank you Sue. I will talk to my Dr. about that on Monday when he phones Hopefully they will allow me to keep taking the Buprenorphine tablet's! I don't know yet what milligram they are going to give me so will , probably, be back in touch next week. I, just remembered that when I had my Lobectomy that I had been on Dipipanone and Cyclizine for year's but the hospital decided to give me Oxycodone instead and I spent 5 - 6 hour's walking round my hospital room with my arm's and leg's going in all directions. This was 2 day's after my Lobectomy and my husband had to hold me up. The pain from the operation was horrendous and the Day Staff didn't know what was happening. The night shift staff got the Pharmacist who gave me Vallium which calmed everything down in half an hour. That was my worst experience of RLS though this last couple of year's has seen me walking round our house and garden at 1 a.m. etc.! It's such a living nightmare. Thank you, again, Sue. Take care please.

[ChrisColumbus]

Presumably they're thinking of one or the other, not both together? The BNF warns of a theoretical severe interaction between the two: buprenorphine is predicted to increase the risk of opiate withdrawal when given with tapentadol.

[Danni54 in reply to ChrisColumbus]

Thank you for that Chris. They are going to give me Buprenorphine tablet's for a month and see how I get on with them but if I can't tolerate them then to try Tapentadol. I don't understand why I should have an issue with Buprenorphine tablet's when I have had the patches for a few week's and the only problems I have had has been because the patch has given me a skin reaction, has worn off after 5 day's and has given me too much of the Buprenorphine when I have been clawing at the patch because of the itch! Hopefully the tablet's will help my leg's and not give me any grief! I have to take Lansoprazole so , I assume that I will have to take the Buprenorphine tablet's a couple of hour's after the Lansoprazole? I am so scared of the RLS coming back full force. It's bad enough that it comes back after 5 day's on the patch !Thank you for your help and advice too Chris. The help, support and advice here has been phenomenal and you have all helped to stop me from giving in ! I have fought a lot of ill health including the cancer but when you don't get sleep, night after night for month's and longer, it's another level of torture don't you think?! I hope that you are alright. Please take care. Danni

[707twitcher]

Since you were on the 20mcg patch, and that seemed to be borderline effective (after Day 3 or 4), I think you will need approximately 1.2 mg in the sublinguals, maybe more. But start a bit lower as you can easily take more since they are fast acting (generally 30-60 minutes). Suggest the doctor gives you .2mg pills so you can titrate up easily in small increments, but since it's a 30 day trial, you'll need plenty of pills. Maybe the Rx could read take 5 to 8 pills nightly as needed (so 240 pills)?

Here's a link to a conversion table for various opiates. It's a bit convoluted, but the bottom line for patch vs. sublingual (after reading footnote 4) is a conversion factor of 60. 20mcg patch x 60 = 1200mcg. Obviously individual experience can differ, but it's a least a starting point to know what to expect. communitycarenc.org/sites/d...

[Danni54 in reply to 707twitcher]

Thank you so much for that information. I will speak to the Dr. tomorrow but I know he and the other's at our Surgery hate that I have been finding out so much about RLS and the medication issues. That doesn't bother me because I like to know as much as I can about what the medical profession is doing ( or not doing ! ) to me! It's my body and my life and they have all made so many errors with me that I am extra cautious ⚠️ I will have this information in front of me when he phones but have to go by what they say....unfortunately! I REALLY don't trust the Pain Clinic! The Pharmacy don't keep Opioid medication in their shop so I, probably, won't get the tablet's till Wednesday or Thursday! I will let you know if you don't mind. Thank you again. Take care. All the best, Danni