1. Sign our petition calling on Cochrane to withdraw their review of Exercise Therapy for CFS here.
    Dismiss Notice
  2. Guest, the 'News in Brief' for the week beginning 15th April 2024 is here.
    Dismiss Notice
  3. Welcome! To read the Core Purpose and Values of our forum, click here.
    Dismiss Notice

Safety and efficacy of amantadine, modafinil, and methylphenidate for fatigue in multiple sclerosis..., 2020, Nourbakhsh et al

Discussion in 'Other health news and research' started by Jaybee00, Dec 4, 2020.

Tags:
  1. Jaybee00

    Jaybee00 Senior Member (Voting Rights)

    Messages:
    1,894
    Safety and efficacy of amantadine, modafinil, and methylphenidate for fatigue in multiple sclerosis: a randomised, placebo-controlled, crossover, double-blind trial
    https://www.thelancet.com/journals/laneur/article/PIIS1474-4422(20)30354-9/fulltext
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Dec 4, 2020
    Jaybee00, Dec 4, 2020
    #1
    Snow Leopard, Michelle, Dolphin and 3 others like this.
  2. Mithriel

    Mithriel Senior Member (Voting Rights)

    Messages:
    2,816
    I was given amantadine for my ME when it was first diagnosed in 1985. It did not help but then again my baby was 3 months old at the time :banghead: The only thing I have ever been prescribed for ME rather than to help a symptom.

    It is an antiviral (antiherpes I think)and also used as at the time as a way to reduce cocaine addiction. Am embarrassing drug to get from the chemist :)
     
    Mithriel, Dec 4, 2020
    #2
    Dolphin, alktipping and chrisb like this.
  3. rvallee

    rvallee Senior Member (Voting Rights)

    Messages:
    12,453
    Location:
    Canada
    Anybody who understands anything about fatigue would know this is pointless. That's what happens when people reject reality and substitute their own, they "specialize" in an illusion.

    Why are people who understand absolutely nothing about fatigue so often the ones doing the "fatigue" research? Seriously this is ridiculous, basic understanding of the issue being researched is not some nice-to-have.
     
    rvallee, Dec 4, 2020
    #3
    Mithriel, alktipping, leokitten and 1 other person like this.
  4. Hutan

    Hutan Moderator Staff Member

    Messages:
    26,907
    Location:
    Aotearoa New Zealand
    I agree that it was unlikely to find a positive result @rvallee, but sometimes research has to be done to disprove something. At least it looks to have been done well enough to find that these drugs weren't helpful.

    I think this finding, especially the finding of more harm, is useful for us. It's another bit of evidence to support the idea that modafinil and methylphenidate aren't helpful for 'fatigue'. When my son went to the Melbourne Royal Childrens' Hospital chronic fatigue clinic, he was prescribed methylphenidate, with the followup appointment scheduled for four months later. The drug didn't help.

    From memory, BPS researchers in New South Wales were looking into modafinil for CFS just this year. This particular MS study, (which I haven't looked at but the words placebo-controlled, double blinded and the fact that adverse events were recorded bode well) can support arguments that any study of stimulants in ME/CFS needs to pay close attention to harms. @Simone
     
    Last edited: Dec 4, 2020
    Hutan, Dec 4, 2020
    #4
    Simone, Andy, Michelle and 5 others like this.
  5. Dolphin

    Dolphin Senior Member (Voting Rights)

    Messages:
    5,095
    https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/9018019/

    Amantadine and L-carnitine treatment of Chronic Fatigue Syndrome
    Note that 3000 mg per day of l-carnitine was used; I suspect a lot of people with ME/CFS who hear about l-carnitine don't try it at that sort of dosage. Also some people try acetyl l-carnitine, whose effects are more on the brain from what I understand.

    Copied to a new thread here
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Nov 29, 2022
    Dolphin, Dec 5, 2020
    #5
    ukxmrv, Hutan and Michelle like this.
  6. Snow Leopard

    Snow Leopard Senior Member (Voting Rights)

    Messages:
    3,827
    Location:
    Australia
    I have tried Amantadine and found it to be ineffective.

    Also of note:
    Amantadine for treatment of fatigue in Guillain‐Barré syndrome: a randomised, double blind, placebo controlled, crossover trial
    https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2117395/
    (no effect)

    Although not many people realise, or want to admit it, the chronic fatigue (and other symptoms) post-GBS is very similar to ME/CFS.
     
    Last edited: Dec 5, 2020
    Snow Leopard, Dec 5, 2020
    #6
    Michelle, FMMM1, Mithriel and 3 others like this.
  7. Sean

    Sean Moderator Staff Member

    Messages:
    7,193
    Location:
    Australia
    I tried methylphenidate. No overall benefit. Though possibly of some use as an occasional single-dose for a specific event/activity, in the same way that painkillers can be. But not enough for it to be recommended for ME.
     
    Sean, Dec 5, 2020
    #7
    Dolphin, Mithriel, ukxmrv and 3 others like this.

Share This Page