Proventus
Making Life Fairer
Help-
Working together to make a difference
Find Us Here
If you have experienced any adverse side effects from a medication or therapy -
Low Dose Naltrexone (LDN)
Naltrexone is a drug referred to as an opiate antagonist. As Naltrexone it is indicated to treat opiate drug addicts addicted to such as heroin or morphine. Doses used for this purpose are usually 50 mg or more each day.
Low dose naltrexone (LDN) -
- HIV/AIDS.
- Multiple Sclerosis (in particular, the primary progressive variant).
- Parkinson's disease.
- Cancer.
- Fibromyalgia.
- Rheumatoid arthritis.
- Ankylosing spondylitis.
- Crohn's disease.
- Ulcerative colitis.
- Hashimoto's thyroiditis.
- Central nervous system disorders.
- Sexual dysfunction (Naltrexone may induce early morning erections in patients who suffer from psychogenic erectile dysfunction. The exact pathway of this effect is unknown.
- Priapism (the presence of a persistent, usually painful, erection of the penis unrelated to sexual stimulation or desire) has been reported in two individuals receiving Vivitrol.
- Naltrexone has been shown to be effective in the reversal of sexual satiety.
- Reference to the potential benefits that may be conferred by LDN are anecdotal -
some sufferers have received no benefit
How does LDN work?
LDN boosts the immune system, activating the body's own natural defences. The brief
blockade of opioid receptors that is caused by taking LDN at bedtime each night is
believed to produce a prolonged up-
LDN is a treatment method that has been in use in the USA since 1985 but is relatively new in the United Kingdom.
Despite its claimed successful use in America, until fully proved here, it must be considered as experimental and that no long term beneficial response can be guaranteed.
Animal research by I Zagon, Ph.D., and his colleagues has shown a marked increase in metenkephalin levels as well.
In human cancer, research by Zagon over many years has demonstrated inhibition of a number of different human tumours in laboratory studies by using endorphins and low dose by LDN, it appears to work directly on the tumours' opioid receptors and, perhaps, induce cancer cell death (apoptosis). In addition, it is believed that they act to increase natural killer cells and other healthy immune defences against cancer.
In general, in people with diseases that are partially or largely triggered by a deficiency of endorphins (including cancer and autoimmune diseases), restoration of the body's normal production of endorphins is the major therapeutic action of LDN. This drug was developed in the 70’s and early 80’s to treat heroin addiction but it was found that lower doses (typically 1/15th to 1/50th) beneficial effect on other conditions.
Responsive conditions appear to include some cancers, autoimmune diseases and neurological conditions.
It has since been reported that some people receiving this drug in the treatment of MS, initially at a dose of just 3 mg per day, have experienced a range of improvements, including such as:
- Improved bladder control.
- Improved heat tolerance.
- Improvements in mobility.
- Improved sleep patterns.
- Reduced pain levels.
- Reduced spasm.
- Reduced fatigue.
- Reduced tremor.
- The two main symptoms that appear to improve most significantly are muscle spasm and fatigue.
Cautionary warnings
Because LDN blocks opioid receptors throughout the body for three or four hours, people using medicine that is an opioid agonist, narcotic medication, should not take LDN until such medicine is completely out of one's system.
such as:
- Codeine.
- Dihydrocodeine.
- Ultram.
- Morphine.
- Tramadol.
- Percocet.
- Duragesic patch.
- Diamorph.
Side effects may ocur
At the doses usually prescribed in these conditions side effects are normally minimal though some patients find it difficult to tolerate with disturbed sleep being the most widely reported negative effect. This rarely persists after the first week. There may also be temporary increase in specific symptoms of the MS, such as:
Full-
Despite the fact that LDN is at a very low dose, the presence of significant introductory
or prolonged side-effects cannot be excluded.
It is advised that LDN should not be taken during pregnancy.
Other web sites
- ldnresearchtrust.org
- History of Naltrexone ( Licensed 1984 and much more information) http://www.gazorpa.com/History.html
- Evidence re AIDS Clinical Trial (Verbal during 2005 LDN conference) www.lowdosenaltrexone.org
- Patent history LDN (First Patent granted 1987) www.thisisms.com/content-
1.html - German Clinical Trial results and Conclusions( Recommend as treatment for MS) http://www.klinik-
dr- evers.de/downloads/LDN- Study_eng.pdf - Written Statement re LDN for MS on the NHS (2.3.05 Dr Ladyman) http://www.publications.parliament.uk/
- Cochrane Collaboration review of Copaxone (no evidence to support use for MS) http://www.cochrane.org/reviews/en/ab004678.html
- BMJ Article (15% of treatments evidence based) http://www.clinicalevidence.com:80/ceweb/about/knowledge.jsp
- Audio evidence given at the 2005 and 2006 LDN conferences, clinical trials information and general details and sources of LDN.www.lowdosenaltrexone.org
- Patient survey reports general information about LDN article on Welsh TV giving Dr Lawrence's clinical experience with LDN. http://www.ldnresearchtrust.org/
- Patient Survey reports http://www.ldners.org/
- Abstract of YP Agrawal Medical Hypotheses about LDN (Absolutely overwhelming anecdotal evidence) http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=Abstract&list_uids=15694688
- Concern about drug trial Safety information (Panorama and Health Committee report) http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/programmes/panorama/6291773.stm
- http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200405/cmselect/cmhealth/42/42.pdf