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Low-Dose Naltrexone in Rheumatological Diseases
Jozélio Freire de Carvalho1, Thelma Skare2
1Núcleo de Pesquisa em Doenças Crônicas não Transmissíveis (NUPEN), School of Nutrition from the Federal University of Bahia, Salvador, Bahia, Brazil.
Low-dose naltrexone (LDN) shows promise as a safe and effective treatment for various rheumatic diseases, including fibromyalgia and rheumatoid arthritis, improving pain and well-being. Further research is needed to confirm these findings in larger studies.
Area of Science:
- Rheumatology
- Immunology
- Pharmacology
Background:
- Naltrexone is FDA-approved for alcohol and opioid abuse.
- Low-dose naltrexone (LDN) is explored for chronic pain and autoimmune conditions, including rheumatic disorders.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review the efficacy of LDN in systemic sclerosis (SSc), dermatomyositis (DM), Sjögren's syndrome (SS), rheumatoid arthritis (RA), and fibromyalgia (FM).
Main Methods:
- Searched PubMed and Embase databases for articles on LDN and rheumatic diseases (1966-August 2022).
Main Results:
- In fibromyalgia (FM), LDN improved pain and well-being (7 studies).
- LDN offered pain relief in systemic sclerosis (SS) and reduced pruritus in scleroderma and dermatomyositis (case descriptions).
- In rheumatoid arthritis (RA), LDN was linked to reduced analgesic and DMARD use, with no serious side effects.
Conclusions:
- LDN is a potentially safe and effective therapy for certain rheumatic diseases.
- Current data is limited, necessitating larger, confirmatory studies.
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