Shingles Research Today is a free monthly online journal that collates and summarizes the latest research about Shingles, including details on symptoms, treatment, causes, virus.

A single dose of gabapentin reduces acute pain and allodynia in patients with herpes zoster.

Berry JD, Petersen KL

UCSF Pain Clinical Research Center, Department of Neurology, University of California, San Francisco, CA, USA.

This randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled crossover study measured the effect of a single dose of oral gabapentin (900 mg) on pain and allodynia associated with herpes zoster. Pain severity decreased by 66% with gabapentin compared to 33% with placebo. Reductions in allodynia area and severity, and overall pain relief, were also greater with gabapentin.

Published 9 August 2005 in Neurology, 65(3): 444-7.
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