Cyclobenzaprine and Back Pain: a Meta-Analysis
ORIGINAL INVESTIGATION Cyclobenzaprine and Back Pain A Meta-analysis Robert Browning, MD; Jeffrey L. Jackson, MD, MPH; Patrick G. O’Malley, MD, MPH Background: Back pain is a common problem for which 14 as were those treated with placebo. Slightly fewer than cyclobenzaprine hydrochloride is frequently pre- 3 individuals (2.7; 95% confidence interval, 2.0-4.2) scribed. needed treatment for 1 to improve. The magnitude of this improvement was modest, with an effect size of 0.38 to Objective: To perform a systematic review of cyclo- 0.58 in all 5 outcomes (local pain, muscle spasm, ten- benzaprine’s effectiveness in the treatment of back pain. derness to palpation, range of motion, and activities of daily living). Treatment efficacy for these 5 outcomes was Methods: We searched MEDLINE, PsycLIT, CINAHL, greatest early, in the first few days of treatment, declin- EMBASE, AIDSLINE, HEALTHSTAR, CANCERLIT, the ing after the first week. Patients receiving cyclobenzap- Cochrane Library, Micromedex, Federal Research in rine also experienced more adverse effects, the most com- Progress, and the references of reviewed articles, and con- mon being drowsiness. tacted Merck, Sharpe and Dohme for English-language, randomized, placebo-controlled trials of cyclobenzap- Conclusions: Cyclobenzaprine is more effective than rine in adults with back pain. Outcomes included global placebo in the management of back pain; the effect is improvement and 5 specific domains of back pain (local modest and comes at the price of greater adverse effects. pain, muscle spasm, range of motion, tenderness to pal- The effect is greatest in the first 4 days of treatment, sug- pation, and activities of daily living).
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