Hello Doctor, Been Taking 100mg Gabapentin Since Almost 7 Months

Posted on Thu, 23 Jun 2022

Question: Hello doctor, been taking 100mg gabapentin since almost 7 months now for my idiotpathic RLS, but now i am noticing sexual dysfunction side effects from it, are these permanent or temporary? does these go away on medicine stoppage? kindly suggest what alternative medicine that i can take in place of this? Thanks for your valuable time and inputs.

Answered by Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar (29 hours later)

Brief Answer:
These adverse effects should regress after stropping gabapentin.

Detailed Answer:
Hello and thanks for asking me directly.

I have read your question.

In most cases, these adverse effects of gabapentin subside after stopping it.

It may take some time however for the restoration of sexual function.

Gabapentin should not be stopped suddenly, its dose should be slowly decreased ( half dose every two weeks for example).

You can use for the RLS other drugs such as Ropinirole, Klonopin, Codeine, Iron salts, etc.

Almost all drugs may result in adverse effects, so, if you notice any adverse effects, you should report them to your Doctor.

Hope you found the answer helpful.

Let me know if I can assist you further.

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Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar