Reglan Use for Treating Stomach Paralysis
"Stomach paralysis," which is technically known as gastroparesis, is a condition in which digested food takes an excessive amount of time in order to move from the stomach to the upper intestinal tract, or fails to move at all. It is the result of damage to the vagus nerve, which controls the contractions of the stomach that move digested food into the intestines. Such damage may be caused by:
- Diabetes
- Surgery or trauma
- Cancer chemotherapy or radiation treatments
- Eating disorders
- Parkinson's disease
- Autoimmune disease
- Genetic disorder
Approximately 33 percent of all cases have no apparent cause, although these are usually attributed to viral infections. Gastroparesis can be either chronic or transient, and is commonly treated with the use of metoclopramide, better known as Reglan.
How Reglan Works
Like many types of anti-psychotic or neuroleptic drugs, Reglan operates as a dopamine antagonist, blocking electro-chemical signals from the brain to various parts of the body. When the dopamine carrying these signals is prevented from reaching receptors in stomach cells, contractions result, forcing food into the intestinal tract.
Cautions
Reglan has been discovered to cause side effects in one in five patients. These side effects can appear in as little as a few days and run from minor to life-threatening, particularly when the drug is taken for a period exceeding 12 weeks. Extreme tiredness or agitation and restlessness is the most common one; among young people (under age 30), the latter symptom can manifest as uncontrollable arm and leg movements .
When the drug is taken for longer than 12 weeks, clinical depression, in addition to symptoms of Parkinson's disease and those associated with tardive dyskinesia can result. Women over the age of 55 and other elderly patients are most likely to develop such symptoms; they are generally permanent.
Who Should Not Take Reglan
Reglan is contraindicated for the following types of patients:
- Asthmatics
- Patients being treated for depression
- Patients with a history of kidney disorders
- Anyone with elevated blood pressure
- Parkinson's patients
- Patients with a bleeding ulcer
Pregnant or nursing women are also advised not to take Reglan because the drug can be passed through breast milk. Older patients (over age 55) may also have increased risk of hip fracture after taking Reglan for more than three months, according to study published in 2004.
Alternative Medications
Doctors have also had success treating gastroparesis using a penicillin-like antibiotic known as erythromycin [7]. Patients should be aware that erythromycin has side effects as well; these include:
Patients experiencing nausea and vomiting while being treated with erythromycin may find relief by using a class of motion-sickness drugs called antiemetics.
If symptoms of gastroparesis are transient rather than chronic, patients can also try eating six small meals a day instead of three large ones. Another option is to take liquid nourishment only until the symptoms have subsided.
© 2010 TardiveDyskinesia.com Last Modified Monday, July 27th, 2009
Disclaimer | Privacy Policy