Pain occurs spontaneously or can be provoked by touch, temperature or movement. For many people, their pain is continuous with varying degrees of intensity and is usually worse at night. Treatment When looking at drugs available to treat neuropathic pain, tricyclic antidepressants are the first choice of treatment. Of these, amitriptyline is most frequently used for its pain reducing and sedating properties. Similar drugs such as nortriptyline or desipramine are used when the side effects of sedation or dryness that can occur with amitriptyline are poorly tolerated.
Tricyclic antidepressants work because they block the normal function of serotonin.
It is one of the chemical substances of the nervous system involved in nerve impulse transmission. If these medications fail, then other therapies with anticonvulsants, narcotics or the anti-spasticity drug baclofen can be tried. Combined drug therapies may provide better relief. However, there is a greater risk for increased medication side effects. Appropriate dosing is key in controlling neuropathic pain.