Mexitil
 

Has anyone used Mexitil or (Mexiletine) for Peripheral Neuropathy. It is classified as a sodium channel blocker. It is encouraging to see another class of medicine being used for this disorder.

Over the years there have be a few people who tried this.

The downside, is that this drug is very hard on the GI tract and many people cannot tolerate it.
Because of that it has never been used much for chronic pain and is reserved for last.

This drug can affect the heart, so report any unusual heart beats, skipped beats etc to your doctor ASAP. This drug was approved for heart issues, and using for chronic pain is off label.

http://www.rxlist.com/mexitil-drug-patient.htm

Sodium Channel Blockers
 

I am not using it. I was going to suggest it to my Dr. I know it is dangerous. I will stick with Neurontin/Celexa/Wellbutrin.

Mexiletine
 

I tried most of the standard pharma's suggested for PN. In my case it seems to be small fiber neuropathic pain. Undetermined cause, but makes sitting or standing still for more than about 10 minutes quite painful.

I have had minimal benefit and a lot of unwelcome side effects from Neurotin, any Gabapentin-family product, Cymbalta, etc. Frankly, I watch the Cymbalta commercials and would say that my experience was quite the oppposite of what the commercials suggest.

I use tramadol, but limit the quantity/frequency/duration of use to avoid building resistance -- which WILL happen after a few months. Tramadol is a very good painkiller if you understand how to use it. If you take >50mg/day consistently, you develop resistance and may have some unpleasant withdrawal symptoms when you stop.

I recently began taking Mexiletine. Some GI tract irritation but not unbearable at this point (taking a few tums seems to help). There has been some reduction in level of pain, but not huge thus far, but I just started, so I plan to give it awhile as long as the GI issue doesn't become more of an issue.

As a follow up to my earlier post, it has now been 2 weeks on Mexiletine (2 x 200mg/dy). During the first 4 days I experienced some gastric burning and wasnt sure how much longer I could continue. I started a 14 day run of Prilosec, which doesn't interact with the Mex. Also was taking 5-6 tums a day. I am now at about day 9 with the Prilosec which substantially reduced the gastric irritation, and have continued the Mex. At day 8, I began to sense a pretty noticeable benefit from the Mex. This was at the end of a weekend when I hadn't sat very much (a primary trigger of PN for me). This past week has been up and down so the jury is still out. However I found Mex to have more manageable side effects than neurontin or cymbalta, which was a terrible experience. My head remains clear and sharp - no foggy groggy stuff as I found with the psych drugs.

After a couple months with Mexiletine, here are my conclusions. It worked very well during the first 3-4 weeks. However it does cause stomach issues, which in my case required using Prilosec pretty much continuously to be able to tolerate it. However, the other side effect in my case was anxiety. I have never had any prior experience with anxiety, but the Mex definitely caused it to the point where it was really intolerable. I've reduced my dosage of Mex to about 100mg/day (original dose was 400mg/day) and even at this level I have to take a break every few days, otherwise I start feeling noticeable anxiety. It's really a shame, as it was pretty helpful with PN in my case. Needless to say, I am a bit disappointed. :(

Hi, I am wondering if you stayed on mexiletine. If so, did the s/e go away? Is it continuing to help your PN?
Thanks, hopeful

How does it work
 

Does anyone know the mechanism of action for this drug in helping with PN?

Mexitil is supposed to block sodium ion channels in the nerve membranes. It was originally put on the market for heart rhythm problems. Some people call it an "oral Lidocaine" .