title: Efficacy of low dose gabapentin in acute herpes zoster for preventing postherpetic neuralgia: a prospective controlled study.
abstract: Postherpetic neuralgia (PHN) is a sequela of herpes zoster that adversely affects quality of life seriously. The risk factors for PHN are well known but the effective interventions that reduce the incidence of PHN are less studied. The objective of this study is to evaluate the efficacy of treatment with gabapentin in patients with acute herpes zoster for preventing PHN. We performed a prospective randomized controlled study of 120 participants diagnosed with acute herpes zoster, aged 50 and over and complaining moderate to severe pain. All patients were treated with valacyclovir and acetaminophen. Half of the participants were assigned to the gabapentin group and received gabapentin 300 mg three times a day additionally. The intensity of pain at every visit and the incidence of PHN in both groups were measured. Total 52 and 49 patients in the gabapentin group and the control group, respectively, had completed 12 weeks of follow-up period. Although the incidence of PHN was higher in the control group, the difference was not statistically significant (6.1% vs. 3.8%, p = 0.67). Our results indicate that the use of low-dose gabapentin in acute herpes zoster seems not effective in the prevention of PHN.
authors.affiliation: Departments of Dermatology, CHA Bundang Medical Center, CHA University, Seongnam, Korea.
authors.forename: Eo G
authors.initials: EG
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.affiliation: Departments of Dermatology, CHA Bundang Medical Center, CHA University, Seongnam, Korea.
authors.forename: Hee J
authors.initials: HJ
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.affiliation: Departments of Dermatology, CHA Bundang Medical Center, CHA University, Seongnam, Korea.
authors.forename: Dong J
authors.initials: DJ
authors.lastname: Hyun
authors.affiliation: Departments of Rehabilitation Medicine, CHA Bundang Medical Center, CHA University, Seongnam, Korea.
authors.forename: Kyunghoon
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Min
authors.affiliation: Departments of Dermatology, CHA Bundang Medical Center, CHA University, Seongnam, Korea.
authors.forename: Dong H
authors.initials: DH
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.affiliation: Departments of Dermatology, CHA Bundang Medical Center, CHA University, Seongnam, Korea.
authors.forename: Moon S
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Yoon
mesh_terms: D000082:Acetaminophen / Q000008:administration & dosage; D000212:Acyclovir / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000031:analogs & derivatives; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000588:Amines / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000009:adverse effects; D000700:Analgesics / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000009:adverse effects; D018712:Analgesics, Non-Narcotic / Q000008:administration & dosage; D000998:Antiviral Agents / Q000008:administration & dosage; D003509:Cyclohexanecarboxylic Acids / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000009:adverse effects; D004359:Drug Therapy, Combination; D005260:Female; D000077206:Gabapentin; D006562:Herpes Zoster / Q000150:complications / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000821:virology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D051474:Neuralgia, Postherpetic / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000517:prevention & control* / Q000821:virology; D010147:Pain Measurement; D011446:Prospective Studies; D011788:Quality of Life; D056910:Republic of Korea; D013997:Time Factors; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D000077483:Valacyclovir; D014633:Valine / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000031:analogs & derivatives; D005680:gamma-Aminobutyric Acid / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000009:adverse effects
chemical_list: D000588:Amines; D000700:Analgesics; D018712:Analgesics, Non-Narcotic; D000998:Antiviral Agents; D003509:Cyclohexanecarboxylic Acids; D000082:Acetaminophen; D005680:gamma-Aminobutyric Acid; D000077206:Gabapentin; D014633:Valine; D000077483:Valacyclovir; D000212:Acyclovir
keywords: gabapentin; herpes zoster; postherpetic neuralgia