Flexeril, Baclofen, Methocarbamol, and Tizanidine

Lower back pain accounts for twenty percent of physician visits in the US (1). Back pain and related musculoskeletal disorders can interfere with daily routines, sleep, job flexeril sciatica performance, and your ability to enjoy your hobbies. Rhabdomyolysis (muscle breakdown) that can progress to failure of several organs, including the kidney, and even death.

Muscle relaxants should always be used at the recommended dosage and for the prescribed time frame. Some muscle relaxants have abuse potential, especially with prolonged use. Many have a sedative effect and cause drowsiness and dizziness, so you should not drive or operate machinery until you know how the medicine affects you. Baclofen’s drug interactions can include prescription medications, over the counter medications, vitamins, and herbal products. Since this is such a broad range of potential interacting substances, inform your doctor of medications, vitamins, and supplements that you are taking. You should not use Baclofen if you have kidney disease, epilepsy, a history of blood clots or stroke, or are a narcotics user.

• That means the effects of doses of Lioresal medication on pregnant women have not been studied yet.
• Cyclobenzaprine functions as a depressant and sedative agent for the central nervous system, specifically acting on the spinal cord and reducing muscle hyperactivity (8).
• Due to the time-sensitive nature of drug information, RxList.com makes no guarantees that the information provided is the most current.
• For people with spasticity, the usual starting dose of oral baclofen is 5 mg three times daily.
• We will also discuss which muscle relaxant is best for different indications (types of muscle pain).

For example, providers sometimes prescribe diazepam to treat anxiety and seizures. Now, skeletal muscle relaxants can further be divided into centrally-acting and direct-acting muscle relaxants. Centrally-acting muscle relaxants include cyclobenzaprine, methocarbamol, metaxalone, chlorzoxazone, tizanidine, baclofen, carisoprodol, and orphenadrine. Lioresal is a popular and first-choice treatment for muscle spasticity caused by spinal cord injuries or multiple sclerosis. Apart from the specific muscle spasms caused by brain injury or multiple sclerosis, Lioresal is not the best medicine to take. There are many alternatives available to Baclofen, but they treat only a specific type of muscle pain.

Baclofen vs Flexeril (Cyclobenzaprine) – Which Is The Better Muscle Relaxer

It is also indicated in spinal cord problems, treating alcoholism, and CNS lesions. There is decreased susceptibility to CNS depression with this antispastic agent. Baclofen, also known as Lioresal, Liofen, or Gablofen, is a gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) agonist and belongs to the class of drugs called skeletal muscle relaxants. There’s an oral version of it and one that can be injected directly into the spinal cord. Intrathecal baclofen is FDA-approved for people with moderate to severe spasticity due to traumatic brain injury, spinal cord injury, or other CNS lesion (2, 6). Research is lacking on whether or not antispasmodics are more effective in treating muscle pain and spasms than NSAIDs or acetaminophen.

The Problem with Muscle Relaxants – MedShadow Foundation

The Problem with Muscle Relaxants.

Posted: Wed, 29 Jan 2020 08:00:00 GMT [source]

It is also injected into the spinal cord (intrathecal) for management of severe spasticity. However, these medications aren’t the first-line therapy for the treatment of pain or spasms. They’re alternative therapy after first- or second-line therapies haven’t worked. This is due to the adverse side effects of antispasmodics, including addiction potential for some types of the medication. Indications Cyclobenzaprine is a centrally acting skeletal muscle relaxant structurally related to tricyclic antidepressants. Cyclobenzaprine is a tricyclic amine salt that works in the central nervous system CNS as a depressant that reduces muscle hyperactivity.

Muscle relaxers can cause more serious side effects like fainting and blurred vision. Talk to your provider if you experience any bothersome side effects. Epsom salt contains high concentrations of magnesium, an essential electrolyte that helps the muscles function correctly. Therefore, it can be used to ease the stress on the muscles, allowing you to recover faster and relax.

Report Problems to the Food and Drug Administration

Flexeril is a relatively safe drug, and usually overdoses are not very serious. Although the two are muscle relaxants, their indications are different. The strength of the two depends on the dosage and purpose for which each drug is used, so it isn’t easy to compare the strength of Baclofen vs. Flexeril. Drug information found in the drug comparisons published on RxList.com is primarily sourced from the FDA drug information.

Muscle relaxants should be used with non-pharmacological approaches such as physical therapy. You should work with your healthcare providers to develop a comprehensive recovery plan that includes rest, stretching, physical therapy, and exercise to treat muscle spasms. There is insufficient evidence to suggest that one skeletal muscle relaxant is better than the others. Both baclofen and Flexeril (cyclobenzaprine) are skeletal muscle relaxants that work in different ways to relieve muscle spasm. Both carry significant adverse effects and should only be used for short-term treatment.

Emphasize the importance of frequent lab tests to monitor coagulation factors. So if people hear this once in your car with the podcast and you want a longer version of it, you can that on the breathable body website and on his youtube page. So, um, you know, a lot of these folks who are listening, a lot of folks that listen to this show work with COPD patients like I do.

Based on individual patient response, the dose may be increased to 10 mg three times a day. Use of Flexeril for periods longer than two or three weeks is not recommended. Drugs.com provides accurate and independent information on more than 24,000 prescription drugs, over-the-counter medicines and natural products. This material is provided for educational purposes only and is not intended for medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Data sources include IBM Watson Micromedex (updated 3 Sep 2023), Cerner Multum™ (updated 28 Aug 2023), ASHP (updated 10 Aug 2023) and others.