This article is one in a series on Medications for Pain. What are your choices? How do various medications work? Pros and cons? How about side effects? Muscle Relaxants are drugs which help muscles relax and prevent muscle spasms. Common medications include Zanaflex and Baclofen. Some medications such anticonvulsants and antidepressants can directly reduce pain. Most muscle relaxants […]

This article is in our series on Medications for Pain. What are your choices? How do various medications work? What are the pros and cons? Side effects? The medication Ketamine is an anesthetic. Anesthetics are drugs which prevent sensations, particularly pain. Ketamine is an NMDA-receptor antagonist. Also in this class is Dextromethorophan (which is an active ingredient in cough syrup). These […]

This article is in our series on Medications for Pain. What are your choices? How do various medications work? Pros and cons? How about side effects? Anesthetics are medications used to prevent sensations, particularly pain. Within this class, there are many different medications, and many ways to use these medications, including: Topical (through the skin), for example, a […]

This article is one in a series on Medications for Pain. What are your choices? How do various medications work? What are the pros and cons? How about side effects? Antidepressants are medications originally used to treat depression or anxiety, and which are also good for pain. Within this class, there are: Tricyclic antidepressants (TCAs), which include […]