Muscle Relaxers: What They Are, Uses, Side Effects & Types

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). 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. This article focuses on skeletal muscle relaxants, as opposed to smooth muscle relaxants. Smooth muscles are the muscles that you don’t have control over, like the muscles in your intestine, stomach and blood vessels.

• In addition, alcohol increases the likelihood of side effects to occur.
• Moreover, when used at high doses, it has recently emerged as a treatment for alcohol dependence.
• For persistent pain, your primary care physician may recommend muscle relaxants.
• The drug comparison information found in this article does not contain any data from clinical trials with human participants or animals performed by any of the drug manufacturers comparing the drugs.

Additional potential side effects of this drug include low blood pressure, swelling, shortness of breath, and insomnia among many other reported adverse effects (2). These side effects are most common with oral baclofen and less common with intrathecal baclofen because the drug will flexeril show up on a 12 panel drug test is injected directly into the fluid surrounding the brain and spinal cord (11). Conservative treatment, such as physical therapy, exercise, and nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), should always be the first line of treatment for muscle spasm and related pain.

What are the uses for baclofen vs. Flexeril?

The drug information provided is intended for reference only and should not be used as a substitute for medical advice. For most patients, the recommended dose of Flexeril is 5 mg three times a day. 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. If you notice any other effects, check with your healthcare professional.

In some cases, this side effect could be so pronounced that you could die. So, if you are prescribed either Flexeril or Baclofen, try to avoid alcohol and narcotics, and always talk to your doctor about what other medications you may be taking. For both medications, do not take them if you are allergic to any of their ingredients. An option that is easy on the pocket and comparatively less sedating too is Methocarbamol. Methocarbamol has been studied for back pain, and results show it can result in complete pain relief. Gablofen is a better option for spasticity and spinal cord diseases, while Robaxin is used mainly for muscle spasm issues.

Along with its needed effects, a medicine may cause some unwanted effects. Although not all of these side effects may occur, if they do occur they may need medical attention. Ask your healthcare professional how you should dispose of any medicine you do not use. Using this medicine with any of the following medicines is usually not recommended, but may be required in some cases.

For Flexeril

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. Addiction Resource is an educational platform for sharing and disseminating information about addiction and substance abuse recovery centers. Addiction Resource is not a healthcare provider, nor does it claim to offer sound medical advice to anyone. Addiction Resource does not favor or support any specific recovery center, nor do we claim to ensure the quality, validity, or effectiveness of any particular treatment center. No one should assume the information provided on Addiction Resource as authoritative and should always defer to the advice and care provided by a medical doctor.

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The sedative properties of tizanidine and cyclobenzaprine may benefit patients with insomnia caused by severe muscle spasms. Methocarbamol and metaxalone are less sedating, although effectiveness evidence is limited. Adverse effects, particularly dizziness and drowsiness, are consistently reported with all skeletal muscle relaxants. The potential adverse effects should be communicated clearly to the patient.

Evidence of Effectiveness

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. Gablofen over-the-counter alternatives can also be used as therapy for muscle spasms caused by acute lower back pain, tension headaches, or other similar conditions in different patients. Over the counter means that this medicine can be bought without a prescription, unlike Baclofen, which should be tried before one looks towards prescription medications.

It also helps with pain relief and muscle movement (Ghose, K., Holmes, K.M. and Matthewson, K., 1980). 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. Both drugs belong to skeletal muscle relaxants, and both of them aim to give relief from muscle spasms. Still, Gablofen acts primarily on the spinal cord, and Flexeril acts centrally, causing muscle relaxation.

Because of limited comparable effectiveness data, choice of agent should be based on side-effect profile, patient preference, abuse potential, and possible drug interactions. Prescription muscle relaxers can be effective in treating spasticity, muscle spasms and muscle-related pain. But it’s important to weigh the possible risks of these medications, including their side effects and addiction potential. Be sure to talk to your healthcare provider about all the options available to treat your symptoms.