Skelaxin vs Flexeril Muscle Relaxer Comparison & Side Effects

Compared to muscle relaxers, these treatments directly target where the pain originates. For the elderly, taking muscle relaxers can bring more harm than benefit. Senior citizens already suffer from decreased fitness levels and reduced motor skills on a daily basis. With muscle relaxer side effects such as drowsiness, dizziness, and confusion, the chances of older patients getting into an accident increase dramatically. Most muscle relaxers work not by stopping what causes the pain, but by controlling the inhibition and excitation levels of motor neurons in the affected muscles. Muscle relaxers work by mimicking the action of naturally-occurring substances in the body, though exactly how they do so remains a challenge for researchers.

Muscle Relaxers Prescribed for Arthritis: Uses and Risks – Verywell Health

Muscle Relaxers Prescribed for Arthritis: Uses and Risks.

Posted: Tue, 20 Jun 2023 07:00:00 GMT [source]

To use it, combine 1 tsp of turmeric powder in one cup of water with 1 tsp of sugar. This medication acts on the locus coeruleus (the main site for brain synthesis of norepinephrine) that is involved with physiological responses to panic and stress. Your healthcare provider and/or pharmacist flexeril prn will give you specific instructions on how to take the medication. Depending on the type of muscle relaxer, there are different forms in which you can take them, such as tablets, capsules, solutions or injections. There is no published experience with metaxalone during pregnancy.

Comparing Flexeril vs Metaxalone

If you feel that you’re dependent on carisoprodol or diazepam or your prescribed dosage isn’t helping to manage your symptoms, don’t take more than your recommended dosage. Spasticity is a disruption in muscle movement patterns that causes certain muscles to contract all at once when you try to move or even at rest. It’s usually caused by damage to nerve pathways within your brain or spinal cord that control movement and stretch reflexes. Healthcare providers mainly prescribe antispastic muscle relaxers to treat spasticity.

• Skeletal muscle relaxants are widely used in treating musculoskeletal conditions.
• Muscle relaxers often provide a sedative effect that will impede daily activities such as operating machinery or exercise.
• Selection of a skeletal muscle relaxant should be individualized to the patient.
• A magnesium deficiency is a common cause of muscle cramps, including leg cramps.

In abuse or overdose, patients may be consistently sedated and even become comatose. Overdose symptoms can include shallow breathing, clammy skin, weak and rapid pulse, paradoxical insomnia, convulsions, severe respiratory depression, and possibly death. This review investigates the efficacy, side effects, and safety of three commonly prescribed skeletal muscle relaxants metaxalone (Skelaxin), cyclobenzaprine (Flexeril), and carisoprodol (Soma). Skelaxin (metaxalone) is a skeletal muscle relaxant prescribed for the short-term treatment of painful muscle spasms. Despite the fact that Metaxalone and Flexeril belong to the same pharmacological class (skeletal muscle relaxants), they have some distinctions in terms of adverse effects, dosage, and cost. In a small number of people, cyclobenzaprine and methocarbamol can cause more serious adverse effects such as allergic reactions with severe rash, swelling, and trouble breathing.

Neuromuscular blocking agents and skeletal muscle relaxants

Side effects include hemolytic anemia, leukopenia, hepatotoxicity, dizziness, drowsiness, light-headedness, paradoxical stimulation, abdominal pain, N/V, headache, and nervousness. Radiofrequency Ablation Procedure involves the use of specialized probes placed along the body to isolate the origins of nerve pain. These same probes then deliver electric signals to disrupt specific nerve conductive abilities. RAP is used to treat back and neck pain, trigeminal neuralgia, and chronic pain syndromes. They require medical examination beforehand to ascertain if the treatment is applicable and to pinpoint the area for treatment. Plus, they often provide immediate or near-immediate pain relief upon completion of the procedure.

Because of limited comparable effectiveness data, choice of agent should be based on side-effect profile, patient preference, abuse potential, and possible drug interactions. Metaxalone is a water-soluble, centrally acting skeletal muscle relaxant that has no direct effect on the muscle tissue. It is generally prescribed for the treatment of acute, chronic, traumatic, and inflammatory musculoskeletal disorders at a dose range of 800–3200mg/day.

Skelaxin and Flexeril are most commonly prescribed as their generic counterparts, metaxalone and cyclobenzaprine. The way they work is not completely understood, but may be due to central nervous system (CNS) depression and sedative effects. Carisoprodol is a centrally acting skeletal muscle relaxant commonly prescribed for the treatment of acute musculoskeletal pain. It is available in tablet form either on its own or in combination with aspirin or codeine.

Meprobamate has a much longer duration of effect and drug accumulation may occur during chronic therapy. Unwanted effects are common with both drugs and include dizziness, drowsiness, disorientation, unsteadiness, slurred speech, ataxia, and tremor. In higher doses, patients may experience intoxication or drunken behavior, loss of balance and coordination, weakness, agitation, disorientation to place and time, and sleep disturbances.

Metaxalone (Oral Route)

Flexeril has extensive metabolism, both gastrointestinal and hepatic and it is excreted primarily as glucuronides compounds via the kidney. The body loses a lot of water when you practice any type of physical exercise. Therefore, it is essential to replace the fluid which you lost. Also, when water is low, toxins are not so easily removed or processed by the human body and they can start recycling in the blood. This spice works as a potent anti-inflammatory and painkiller agent.

Although antispastics and antispasmodics are both types of skeletal muscle relaxants, they have specific and different uses. In addition, some of these medications treat conditions not related to muscle function. For example, providers sometimes prescribe diazepam to treat anxiety and seizures. Skeletal muscle relaxants are commonly prescribed for the treatment of muscle spasms and discomfort.