Avoiding these medicines if possible is usually recommended if you are pregnant. Most people who take antispasmodics do not have any serious side-effects. If side-effects occur, they are usually minor. In general, the smooth muscle-relaxant medicines have fewer side-effects. The side-effects depend on which of the antispasmodic medicines you are taking.

Some of the more common side-effects are:. Note : the above is not the full list of side-effects for these medicines. Please see the information leaflet that comes with your medicine for a full list of possible side-effects and cautions.

These medicines sometimes react with other medicines that you may take. Ensure your pharmacist and doctor knows of any other medicines that you are taking, including ones that you have bought rather than been prescribed.

If you have IBS you may become used to having gut intestinal symptoms. However, do not assume all gut symptoms are due to your IBS. You should consult your doctor if you experience any change in the usual pattern of your symptoms.

In particular, the following problems can indicate a serious gut disorder:. You can buy some antispasmodics from your pharmacist. Others are only available with a prescription. If you think you have had a side-effect to one of your medicines you can report this on the Yellow Card Scheme.

You can do this online at www. The Yellow Card Scheme is used to make pharmacists, doctors and nurses aware of any new side-effects that medicines or any other healthcare products may have caused. If you wish to report a side-effect, you will need to provide basic information about:. Irritable bowel syndrome in adults: diagnosis and management of irritable bowel syndrome in primary care ; NICE Clinical Guideline February , updated April Irritable bowel syndrome ; NICE CKS, August UK access only.

BNF - antispasmodics. hi, im 58, had ibs for 30 years. recently had every test under the sun to rule put other conditions. All was found was a polyp to be removed this week via colonoscopy , praying all will be okMy ibs Disclaimer: This article is for information only and should not be used for the diagnosis or treatment of medical conditions.

Egton Medical Information Systems Limited has used all reasonable care in compiling the information but make no warranty as to its accuracy. Consult a doctor or other health care professional for diagnosis and treatment of medical conditions.

For details see our conditions. In this series. In this series: Irritable Bowel Syndrome IBS Trapped Wind, Gas and Bloating Bile Acid Diarrhoea Probiotics and Prebiotics. In this series Irritable Bowel Syndrome IBS Trapped Wind, Gas and Bloating Bile Acid Diarrhoea Probiotics and Prebiotics.

In this article What are antispasmodics? How do antispasmodics work? Which conditions are antispasmodics used to treat? How do I take antispasmodics? How quickly do antispasmodics work?

How long is treatment needed for? Who cannot take antispasmodics? What are the side-effects of antispasmodics? Other considerations Can I buy antispasmodics? Antispasmodics In this article What are antispasmodics? What are antispasmodics?

There are two main types, as follows. Antimuscarinics such as: Dicycloverine. Smooth muscle relaxants such as: Alverine.

Peppermint oil. Want to see a dietician? Book a private assessment with a qualified dietician today. Skeletal muscle relaxants have also been studied as adjunctive therapy to analgesics in treating acute low back pain.

In one open-label study 20 patients , the addition of cyclobenzaprine to naproxen Naprosyn resulted in a statistically significant decrease in muscle spasm and tenderness compared with naproxen alone.

Cyclobenzaprine has also been studied in treating fibromyalgia. A meta-analysis of five trials ranging from six to 24 weeks' duration included a total of patients with fibromyalgia.

The authors reported that, although cyclobenzaprine moderately improved sleep and pain, the long-term benefits were unknown. This meta-analysis was limited by a high drop-out rate, short trial duration, few studies having an intention-to-treat design, and inadequate blinding.

Strong data comparing skeletal muscle relaxants to each other are scarce. A systematic review evaluated 46 trials head-to-head and placebo-controlled comprising mostly of studies on low back pain or neck syndromes.

The placebo-controlled trials included 17 on cyclobenzaprine, six on tizanidine, four on carisoprodol, and four on orphenadrine, and were mostly conducted more than 15 years ago. The average patient enrollment was less than patients range 12 to patients.

In general, all of the drugs were shown to have some benefit. One fair-quality study showed carisoprodol was better than diazepam at improving muscle spasm and global and functional status in patients with low back pain.

A different systematic review did include some studies which were considered to be high quality. Although the evidence for effectiveness of skeletal muscle relaxants in musculoskeletal conditions is limited, strong evidence does exist in terms of toxicity.

Selection of a skeletal muscle relaxant should be individualized to the patient. If there are tender spots over the muscle or trigger points on physical examination, a skeletal muscle relaxant is a reasonable adjunct to analgesic treatment of low back pain. Skeletal muscle relaxants may also be used as an alternative to NSAIDs in patients who are at risk of gastrointestinal or renal complications.

Patients with low back pain or fibromyalgia may benefit from treatment with cyclobenzaprine. Recent evidence showed similar effectiveness at half of its manufacturer recommended dose 5 mg , but with fewer adverse effects. Higher doses of cyclobenzaprine or tizanidine would be appropriate to promote sedation in cases of more severe discomfort or perceived muscular spasm.

Although there appears to be insufficient data on metaxalone and methocarbamol, these may be useful in patients who cannot tolerate the sedative properties of cyclobenzaprine or tizanidine. Of note, methocarbamol costs substantially less than metaxalone.

Carisoprodol is metabolized to meprobamate a class III controlled substance and has been shown to produce psychological and physical dependence. Although all skeletal muscle relaxants should be used with caution in older patients, diazepam especially should be avoided in older patients or in patients with significant cognitive or hepatic impairment.

Carisoprodol carisoprodol tablet [package insert]. Philadelphia, Pa. Accessed January 14, Chlorzoxazone chlorzoxazone tablet [package insert]. Sellersville, Pa. Cyclobenzaprine hydrochloride cyclobenzaprine hydrochloride tablet [package insert]. Corona, Calif.

Diazepam diazepam tablet [package insert]. Miami, Fla. Skelaxin metaxalone [package insert]. Briston, Tenn. Methocarbamol methocarbamol tablet [package insert]. Eatontown, NJ: West-ward Pharmaceutical Corp.

January 14, Orphenadrine citrate extended-release orphenadrine citrate tablet [package insert]. Princeton, NJ: Sandoz, Inc. Tizanidine hydrochloride tizanidine hydrochloride tablet [package insert].

Pomona, NY: Barr Laboratories. United States Food and Drug Administration. Zanaflex tizanidine hydrochloride tablets and capsules. htm Zanaflex. Top brand-name drugs by units in Top generic drugs by units in Chou R, Qaseem A, Snow V, et al.

Diagnosis and treatment of low back pain: a joint clinical practice guideline from the American College of Physicians and the American Pain Society [published correction appears in Ann Intern Med.

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EULAR evidence-based recommendations for the management of fibromyalgia syndrome. Ann Rheum Dis. Luo X, Pietrobon R, Curtis LH, Hey LA. Prescription of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and muscle relaxants for back pain in the United States. van Tulder MW, Touray T, Furlan AD, Solway S, Bouter LM.

Muscle relaxants for non-specific low back pain. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. Chou R, Peterson K, Helfand M. Comparative efficacy and safety of skeletal muscle relaxants for spasticity and musculoskeletal conditions: a systematic review. J Pain Symptom Manage.

Diamond S. Double-blind study of metaxalone; use as a skeletal-muscle relaxant. Chou R, Huffman LH. Arbus L, Fajadet B, Aubert D, Morre M, Goldfinger E. Activity of tetrazepam in low back pain.

Clin Trials J. Salzmann E, Pforringer W, Paal G, Gierend M. Treatment of chronic low-back syndrome with tetrazepam in a placebo controlled double-blind trial.

J Drug Dev. Scheiner JJ. Cyclobenzaprine in the treatment of local muscle spasm. Minneapolis, Minn. Aiken DW. A comparative study of the effects of cyclobenzaprine, diazepam, and placebo on acute skeletal muscle spasm of local origin. Brown BR, Womble J. Cyclobenzaprine in intractable pain syndrome with muscle spasms.

Basmajian JV. Cyclobenzaprine hydrochloride effect on skeletal muscle spasm in the lumbar region and neck: two double-blind controlled clinical laboratory studies. Arch Phys Med Rehabil. Browning R, Jackson JL, O'Malley PG. Cyclobenzaprine and back pain: a meta-analysis. Arch Intern Med.