Paradoxical effects of continuous high dose gabapentin treatment on autonomic dysreflexia after complete spinal cord injury.

Paradoxical effects of continuous high dose gabapentin treatment on autonomic dysreflexia after complete spinal cord injury. Exp Neurol. 2019 Oct 30;:113083 Authors: Eldahan KC, Williams HC, Cox DH, Gollihue JL, Patel SP, Rabchevsky AG Abstract Spinal cord injury (SCI) can have profound effects on the autonomic and cardiovascular systems, notably with injuries above high-thoracic levels that result in the development of autonomic dysreflexia (AD) characterized by volatile hypertension in response to exaggerated sympathetic reflexes triggered by afferent stimulation below the injury level. Pathophysiological changes associated with the development of AD include sprouting of both nociceptive afferents and ascending propriospinal 'relay' neurons below the injury, as well as dynamic changes in synaptic inputs onto sympathetic preganglionic neurons. However, it remains uncertain whether synapse formation between sprouted c-fibers and propriospinal neurons contributes to the development of exaggerated sympathetic reflexes produced during AD. We previously reported that once daily treatment with the anti-epileptic and neuropathic pain medication, gabapentin (GBP), at low dosage (50 mg/kg) mitigates experimentally induced AD soon after injections, likely by impeding glutamatergic signaling. Since much higher doses of GBP are reported to block the formation of excitatory synapses, we hypothesized that continuous, high dosage GBP treatment a...
Source: Experimental Neurology - Category: Neurology Authors: Tags: Exp Neurol Source Type: research