Sodium channel blockers for the treatment of neuropathic pain.
Drugs that block voltage-gated sodium channels are efficacious in the management of neuropathic pain. Accordingly, this class of ion channels has been a major focus of analgesic research both in academia and in the pharmaceutical/biotechnology industry. In this article, we review the history of the use of sodium channel blockers, describe the current status of sodium channel drug discovery, highlight the challenges and hurdles to attain sodium channel subtype selectivity, and review the potential usefulness of selective sodium channel blockers in neuropathic pain.
Pain & Related Disorders Team, Johnson & Johnson Pharmaceutical Research & Development, LLC, San Diego, California 92121, USA.
Anindya
A
Bhattacharya
Alan D
AD
Wickenden
Sandra R
SR
Chaplan
D000818:Animals; D055808:Drug Discovery; D006801:Humans; D009437:Neuralgia / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000503:physiopathology; D010523:Peripheral Nervous System Diseases / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000503:physiopathology; D026941:Sodium Channel Blockers / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D015222:Sodium Channels / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism
D026941:Sodium Channel Blockers; D015222:Sodium Channels