Is it possible that Suboxone might help to make fibromyalgia symptoms more tolerable?

Suboxone treatment uses the prescription opioid, buprenorphine, to treat opioid dependence and addiction. The Suboxone Film is a strip containing sublingual buprenorphine and naloxone, to be placed carefully under the tongue for absorption.

It is an effective addiction treatment for people who are addicted to pain medication or street opioids. The buprenorphine in Suboxone has a unique mixed effect on the opioid receptor that reduces opioid withdrawal and cravings.

In addition to treating opioid addiction, Suboxone does also help with nerve pain and severe pain due to acute and chronic conditions. Could Suboxone therapy also help a chronic pain patient with fibromyalgia, even if they do not have a substance abuse issue?

Fibromyalgia pain occurs with very light touch at one or more of various tender points on the person’s body. This chronic pain condition that causes widespread pain throughout the body reduces a person’s ability to function in daily life.

A person with fibromyalgia must always be on guard for accidental skin pressure that can elicit excruciating pain. For example, a simple hug can be intolerably painful.

Why do doctors choose to use other pain meds besides opioid medication to treat conditions such as fibromyalgia and neuropathic pain?

Doctors try to avoid opioid use in treating this condition because they are concerned about opioid addiction. They may also be worried about medication tolerance and opioid-induced hyperalgesia, a condition where opioids can intensify the pain.

Is it possible that a person with fibromyalgia who goes to a pain management doctor for opioid therapy can develop opioid use disorder? While most pain patients do not become addicted, there is a significant risk of drug abuse, addiction, and opioid dependency.

There was a period, not long ago, when doctors prescribed opioid drugs more freely for pain relief. Then, with the opioid epidemic and the Centers for Disease Control writing a report on responsible opioid prescribing in 2016, most doctors quickly reduced or stopped opioid prescribing.

Suboxone is approved by the FDA for treating opioid dependence, but it has never been given a fair chance as an opioid pain reliever. The main ingredient, buprenorphine, is an effective pain reliever with fewer side effects compared to other opioids.

Additionally, buprenorphine is less likely to cause opioid tolerance, addiction, or respiratory depression. While it is not perfect in every respect, its properties would have been preferable to most other opioids.

Why would Suboxone not be a good choice for treating fibromyalgia?

While Suboxone is less likely to cause many of the problems of other opioids, it does cause significant physical dependence within a short time. People who take Suboxone long-term find it difficult to stop taking it, due to the discomfort of opioid withdrawal.

The withdrawal symptoms caused by stopping Suboxone use can be severe. Some people claim that Suboxone withdrawal is worse than heroin withdrawal.
Still, it is possible to taper off of Suboxone gradually. It may also help to use Lucemyra, a drug approved by the FDA to reduce withdrawal symptoms.

In addition to developing opioid dependence from Suboxone use, patients who take the drug may experience side effects. Some Suboxone side effects include constipation, headache, insomnia, difficulty urinating, and excessive sweating.

It is important that, if a doctor chooses to prescribe Suboxone to their patient to treat fibromyalgia flare-ups, that they explain the risks of Suboxone side effects clearly. Patients must be provided with informed consent.

How does the naloxone in Suboxone help with pain or addiction?

Imagine a doctor prescribing a drug to a patient and telling them that the drug will provide them no beneficial effects. The drug is administered as a threat of punishment if the patient decides to go against doctor’s orders in a specific way.

Naloxone is such a drug. When a doctor prescribes Suboxone, they are prescribing both buprenorphine and naloxone together.
Buprenorphine helps the patient to feel better and to function better. Naloxone does nothing, unless the patient chooses to make a bad decision and melt down their Suboxone films with the intention of injecting them into a vein, thinking it will get them high.

As part of opioid addiction treatment, the doctor will instruct the patient to no longer shoot up any kind of drug into their veins. The naloxone that is in Suboxone is an abuse deterrent. It makes the patient think twice before reaching for a syringe and needle to misuse their Suboxone films or tablets.

If the heroin-addicted patient attempts to shoot up Suboxone, they will get physically sick from the effects of naloxone mixing with buprenorphine in the bloodstream. As the naloxone abruptly displaces buprenorphine at the opioid receptors, the precipitated withdrawal reaction is immediate and unpleasant.

Does naloxone provide any benefit in treating fibromyalgia?

Naloxone, as an opioid receptor blocker, is in an interesting family of drugs. It is related to another opioid antagonist, naltrexone.

Both of these drugs block opioid receptors. Naloxone is shorter-acting, and it is only minimally absorbed when taken orally.

Naltrexone, on the other hand, works very well orally, and it lasts for many hours. While the standard dose of naltrexone tablets for treating alcoholism is 50 mg, there is another use of naltrexone in the range of about 1 mg to 6 mg.

Using naltrexone at very low dosages is known as low dose naltrexone, or LDN. LDN works differently than full dose naltrexone, helping to improve neuroinflammation and regulate the balance of the body’s endorphin system.

There is also a protocol, known as ultra low dose naltrexone, that uses dosages lower than 1 mg. The benefits of this therapy are derived because of the mild and short-acting nature of naltrexone in this dosage range.

If low dose naltrexone and ultra low dose naltrexone both help fibromyalgia patients, why not naloxone? Naloxone is a short-acting opioid receptor blocker, and it can also be delivered in low dosages, if necessary.

Does naloxone get absorbed when a person takes Suboxone the right way?

Suboxone doctors often tell their patients that the naloxone does not get absorbed at all when they properly absorb Suboxone under their tongue. When a patient complains of having a reaction to naloxone, the doctor may shake their head and say that it is impossible, because the naloxone is not at all absorbed orally or sublingually.

This is a misunderstanding on the part of the doctor. A small amount of naloxone is absorbed when Suboxone is taken properly, under the tongue.

Naloxone shows up on sensitive, quantitative lab tests that measure the amounts of drugs in the patient’s system. It is absorbed orally in small amounts.

Patients with fibromyalgia, familiar with how LDN works to help fibromyalgia symptoms, will be curious to know if there could be some benefit from the traces of naloxone absorbed with proper use of Suboxone. It does seem possible that sublingual naloxone could help with treating fibromyalgia, similarly to low dose naltrexone therapy.

Is Suboxone better than Subutex for treating fibromyalgia?

We can easily reason that buprenorphine, a drug that partially acts as an opioid agonist, will help with the painful symptoms of fibromyalgia. Buprenorphine is the main ingredient of both Suboxone and Subutex, both of which are sublingual medications.

The difference between Suboxone and Subutex is that Suboxone contains both buprenorphine and naloxone, while Subutex only contains buprenorphine. While both will help with fibromyalgia pain symptoms, it is possible that Suboxone will help more over time, compared to Subutex.

Suboxone contains naloxone, which will be minimally absorbed orally, under the tongue. This trace amount of naloxone entering the fibromyalgia patient’s system may have additional beneficial effects.

Therefore, it is possible that in addition to relieving pain as an opioid, Suboxone may also help with neuroinflammation, which may contribute to the chronic pain associated with fibromyalgia. While we cannot be certain of this additional benefit, it is worth taking a closer look to see if low dose naloxone, taken sublingually, can help in the treatment of fibromyalgia.

The best place to start in studying these effects and the effectiveness of Suboxone or Subutex in treating fibromyalgia patients is to work first with patients who have both opioid use disorder and fibromyalgia. This way, Suboxone treatment is already indicated, and we can observe any improvements in the patient’s chronic pain symptoms that are due to their diagnosis of fibromyalgia.

It is essential to get the relevant information before proceeding with medications. That’s why for any further information, contact Dr. Mark Leeds.