4.1. Therapeutic indications

Epilepsy

Gabapentin capsules are indicated as adjunctive therapy in the treatment of partial seizures with and without secondary generalization in adults and children aged 6 years and above (see section 5.1).

Gabapentin capsules are indicated as monotherapy in the treatment of partial seizures with and without secondary generalization in adults and adolescents aged 12 years and above.

Treatment of peripheral neuropathic pain

Gabapentin capsules are indicated for the treatment of peripheral neuropathic pain such as painful diabetic neuropathy and post-herpetic neuralgia in adults.

4.2. Posology and method of administration

Posology

For all indications a titration scheme for the initiation of therapy is described in Table 1, which is recommended for adults and adolescents aged 12 years and above. Dosing instructions for children under 12 years of age are provided under a separate sub-heading later in this section.

Prior to starting treatment with gabapentin, a discussion should be held with patients to put in place a strategy for ending treatment with gabapentin in order to minimise the risk of dependence, addiction and drug withdrawal syndrome (see section 4.4).

Treatment should be given for the shortest possible duration. If this medicine is being used for the treatment of epilepsy this medicine should be used for as long as the prescriber considers it necessary.

Table 1

DOSING CHART – INITIAL TITRATION

Day 1

Day 2

Day 3

300 mg once a day

300 mg two times a day

300 mg three times a day

Discontinuation of gabapentin

In accordance with current clinical practice, if gabapentin has to be discontinued it is recommended this should be done gradually over a minimum of 1 week independent of the indication.

Epilepsy

Epilepsy typically requires long-term therapy. Dosage is determined by the treating physician according to individual tolerance and efficacy.

Adults and adolescents

In clinical trials, the effective dosing range was 900 to 3600 mg/day. Therapy may be initiated by titrating the dose as described in Table 1 or by administering 300 mg three times a day (TID) on Day 1. Thereafter, based on individual patient response and tolerability, the dose can be further increased in 300 mg/day increments every 2-3 days up to a maximum dose of 3600 mg/day. Slower titration of gabapentin dosage may be appropriate for individual patients. The minimum time to reach a dose of 1800 mg/day is one week, to reach 2400 mg/day is a total of 2 weeks, and to reach 3600 mg/day is a total of 3 weeks. Dosages up to 4800 mg/day have been well tolerated in long-term open-label clinical studies. The total daily dose should be divided in three single doses, the maximum time interval between the doses should not exceed 12 hours to prevent breakthrough convulsions.

Children aged 6 years and above

The starting dose should range from 10 to 15 mg/kg/day and the effective dose is reached by upward titration over a period of approximately three days. The effective dose of gabapentin in children aged 6 years and older is 25 to 35 mg/kg/day. Dosages up to 50 mg/kg/day have been well tolerated in a long-term clinical study. The total daily dose should be divided in three single doses, the maximum time interval between doses should not exceed 12 hours.

It is not necessary to monitor gabapentin plasma concentrations to optimize gabapentin therapy. Further, gabapentin may be used in combination with other antiepileptic medicinal products without concern for alteration of the plasma concentrations of gabapentin or serum concentrations of other antiepileptic medicinal products.

Peripheral neuropathic pain

Adults

The therapy may be initiated by titrating the dose as described in Table 1. Alternatively, the starting dose is 900 mg/day given as three equally divided doses. Thereafter, based on individual patient response and tolerability, the dose can be further increased in 300 mg/day increments every 2-3 days up to a maximum dose of 3600 mg/day. Slower titration of gabapentin dosage may be appropriate for individual patients. The minimum time to reach a dose of 1800 mg/day is one week, to reach 2400 mg/day is a total of 2 weeks, and to reach 3600 mg/day is a total of 3 weeks.

In the treatment of peripheral neuropathic pain such as painful diabetic neuropathy and post-herpetic neuralgia, efficacy and safety have not been examined in clinical studies for treatment periods longer than 5 months. If a patient requires dosing longer than 5 months for the treatment of peripheral neuropathic pain, the treating physician should assess the patient's clinical status and determine the need for additional therapy.

Instruction for all areas of indication

In patients with poor general health, i.e., low body weight, after organ transplantation etc., the dose should be titrated more slowly, either by using smaller dosage strengths or longer intervals between dosage increases.

Elderly (over 65 years of age)

Elderly patients may require dosage adjustment because of declining renal function with age (see Table 2). Somnolence, peripheral oedema and asthenia may be more frequent in elderly patients.

Renal impairment

Dosage adjustment is recommended in patients with compromised renal function as described in Table 2 and/or those undergoing haemodialysis. Gabapentin 100 mg capsules can be used to follow dosing recommendations for patients with renal insufficiency.

Table 2

DOSAGE OF GABAPENTIN IN ADULTS BASED ON RENAL FUNCTION

Creatinine Clearance (mL/min)

Total Daily Dosea (mg/day)

≥80

900-3600

50-79

600-1800

30-49

300-900

15-29

150b-600

<15c

150b-300

a Total daily dose should be administered as three divided doses. Reduced dosages are for patients with renal impairment (creatinine clearance < 79 mL/min).

b The 150 mg daily dose to be administered as 300 mg every other day.

c For patients with creatinine clearance <15 mL/min, the daily dose should be reduced in proportion to creatinine clearance (e.g., patients with a creatinine clearance of 7.5 mL/min should receive one-half the daily dose that patients with a creatinine clearance of 15 mL/min receive).

Use in patients undergoing haemodialysis

For anuric patients undergoing haemodialysis who have never received gabapentin, a loading dose of 300 to 400 mg, then 200 to 300 mg of gabapentin following each 4 hours of haemodialysis, is recommended. On dialysis-free days, there should be no treatment with gabapentin.

For renally impaired patients undergoing haemodialysis, the maintenance dose of gabapentin should be based on the dosing recommendations found in Table 2. In addition to the maintenance dose, an additional 200 to 300 mg dose following each 4-hour haemodialysis treatment is recommended.

Method of administration

For oral use.

Gabapentin can be given with or without food and should be swallowed whole with sufficient fluid-intake (e.g. a glass of water).

4.3. Contraindications

Hypersensitivity to the active substance or to any of the excipients listed in section 6.1.

4.4. Special warnings and precautions for use

Myasthenia gravis

Gabapentin should be used with caution in patients with myasthenia gravis as post-marketing cases of exacerbation of myasthenia gravis have been reported with gabapentin.

Severe cutaneous adverse reactions (SCARs)

Severe cutaneous adverse reactions (SCARs) including Stevens-Johnson syndrome (SJS), toxic epidermal necrolysis (TEN) and Drug rash with eosinophilia and systemic symptoms (DRESS), which can be life-threatening or fatal, have been reported in association with gabapentin treatment. At the time of prescription patients should be advised of the signs and symptoms and monitored closely for skin reactions. If signs and symptoms suggestive of these reactions appear, gabapentin should be withdrawn immediately and an alternative treatment considered (as appropriate).

If the patient has developed a serious reaction such as SJS, TEN or DRESS with the use of gabapentin, treatment with gabapentin must not be restarted in this patient at any time.

Anaphylaxis

Gabapentin can cause anaphylaxis. Signs and symptoms in reported cases have included difficulty breathing, swelling of the lips, throat, and tongue, and hypotension requiring emergency treatment. Patients should be instructed to discontinue gabapentin and seek immediate medical care should they experience signs or symptoms of anaphylaxis (see section 4.8).

Suicidal ideation and behaviour

Suicidal ideation and behaviour have been reported in patients treated with anti-epileptic agents in several indications. A meta-analysis of randomised placebo controlled trials of anti-epileptic drugs has also shown a small increased risk of suicidal ideation and behaviour. The mechanism of this risk is not known Cases of suicidal ideation and behaviour have been observed in patients treated with gabapentin in the post-marketing experience (see section 4.8)

Patients (and caregivers of patients) should be advised to seek medical advice should signs of suicidal ideation or behaviour emerge. Patients should be monitored for signs of suicidal ideation and behaviours and appropriate treatment should be considered. Discontinuation of gabapentin treatment should be considered in case of suicidal ideation and behaviour.

Acute pancreatitis

If a patient develops acute pancreatitis under treatment with gabapentin, discontinuation of gabapentin should be considered (see section 4.8).

Seizures

Although there is no evidence of rebound seizures with gabapentin, abrupt withdrawal of anticonvulsants in epileptic patients may precipitate status epilepticus (see section 4.2).

As with other antiepileptic medicinal products, some patients may experience an increase in seizure frequency or the onset of new types of seizures with gabapentin.

As with other anti-epileptics, attempts to withdraw concomitant anti-epileptics in treatment refractive patients on more than one anti-epileptic, in order to reach gabapentin monotherapy have a low success rate.

Gabapentin is not considered effective against primary generalized seizures such as absences and may aggravate these seizures in some patients. Therefore, gabapentin should be used with caution in patients with mixed seizures including absences.

Gabapentin treatment has been associated with dizziness and somnolence, which could increase the occurrence of accidental injury (fall). There have also been post-marketing reports of confusion, loss of consciousness and mental impairment. Therefore, patients should be advised to exercise caution until they are familiar with the potential effects of the medication.

Concomitant use with opioids and other CNS depressants

Patients who require concomitant treatment with central nervous system (CNS) depressants, including opioids should be carefully observed for signs of central nervous system (CNS) depression, such as somnolence, sedation and respiratory depression. Patients who use gabapentin and morphine concomitantly may experience increases in gabapentin concentrations. The dose of gabapentin or concomitant treatment with CNS depressants including opioids should be reduced appropriately (see section 4.5).

Caution is advised when prescribing gabapentin concomitantly with opioids due to risk of CNS depression. In a population-based, observational, nested case-control study of opioid users, co-prescription of opioids and gabapentin was associated with an increased risk for opioid-related death compared to opioid prescription use alone (adjusted odds ratio [aOR], 1.49 [95% CI, 1.18 to 1.88, p<0.001]).

Respiratory depression

Gabapentin has been associated with severe respiratory depression. Patients with compromised respiratory function, respiratory or neurological disease, renal impairment, concomitant use of CNS depressants and the elderly might be at higher risk of experiencing this severe adverse reaction. Dose adjustments might be necessary in these patients.

Elderly (over 65 years of age)

No systematic studies in patients 65 years or older have been conducted with gabapentin. In one double blind study in patients with neuropathic pain, somnolence, peripheral oedema and asthenia occurred in a somewhat higher percentage in patients aged 65 years or above, than in younger patients. Apart from these findings, clinical investigations in this age group do not indicate an adverse event profile different from that observed in younger patients.

Paediatric population

The effects of long-term (greater than 36 weeks) gabapentin therapy on learning, intelligence, and development in children and adolescents have not been adequately studied. The benefits of prolonged therapy must therefore be weighed against the potential risks of such therapy.

Drug dependence, tolerance and potential for abuse

Drug addiction comprises behavioural, cognitive and physiological phenomena that may include a strong desire to take the drug, difficulties in controlling drug use and possible tolerance or physical dependence. Physical dependence is a state that develops as a result of physiological adaptation in response to repeated drug use, which manifests as withdrawal signs and symptoms after abrupt discontinuation or a significant dose reduction of a drug. Addiction and dependence are related but distinct presentations and in discussing these themes, terminology that apportion blame to the individual should be avoided.

For all patients, prolonged use of this product may lead to drug dependence and addiction but can occur with short-term use at recommended therapeutic doses. The risks are increased in individuals with current or past history of substance misuse disorder (including alcohol misuse) or mental health disorder (e.g., major depression).

Additional support and monitoring may be necessary when prescribing for patients at risk of drug misuse.

A comprehensive patient history should be taken to document concomitant medications, including over-the-counter medicines and medicines obtained on-line, and past and present medical and psychiatric conditions.

Patients may find that treatment is less effective with chronic use and express a need to increase the dose to obtain the same level of symptom control as initially experienced. Patients may also supplement their treatment with additional medications to achieve the same effect. These could be signs that the patient is developing tolerance. The risks of developing tolerance should be explained to the patient.

Overuse or misuse may result in overdose and/or death. It is important that patients only use medicines that are prescribed for them at the dose they have been prescribed and do not give this medicine to anyone else.

Patients should be closely monitored for signs of misuse, abuse, or addiction.

The clinical need for treatment with gabapentin should be reviewed regularly, with frequent assessments of patients being undertaken during the course of their treatment.

Withdrawal symptoms

After discontinuation or dose reduction of short-term and long-term treatment with gabapentin, withdrawal symptoms have been observed (see section 4.8).The patient should be informed about this at the start of the treatment. Most frequently reported symptoms include anxiety, insomnia, nausea, pains, sweating, tremor, headache, depression, feeling abnormal, dizziness, and malaise. The occurrence of withdrawal symptoms may indicate drug dependence. If gabapentin should be discontinued or the dose reduced, it is recommended this should be done gradually over a minimum of 1 week independent of the indication (see section 4.2).

Drug withdrawal syndrome

Prior to starting treatment with gabapentin, a discussion should be held with patients to explain the risk of dependence, addiction, and drug withdrawal syndrome. A withdrawal strategy for ending treatment with gabapentin should also be put in place with the patient before starting treatment (there may be exceptions to this in specific clinical situations such as symptom management in end of life palliative care, and for use in epilepsy).

Drug withdrawal syndrome may occur upon abrupt cessation of therapy or dose reduction. When a patient no longer requires therapy, it is advisable to taper the dose gradually to minimise symptoms of withdrawal. Tapering from a high dose may take in excess of weeks or months. Patients should be informed of this when the medication is first prescribed.

The reduction schedule for a patient should be tailored to the individual and should be modified to allow intolerable withdrawal symptoms to improve before making the next reduction. If using a published withdrawal schedule, apply it flexibly to accommodate the person's preferences, changes to their circumstances and the response to dose reductions.

Reduce the dose by a fixed amount at each decrement, unless clinical risk is such that rapid withdrawal is needed.

If a patient develops withdrawal reactions, consider pausing the taper or increasing the dosage to the previous tapered dosage level.

If women take this drug during pregnancy, there is a risk that their newborn infants will experience neonatal withdrawal syndrome.

Laboratory tests

False positive readings may be obtained in the semi-quantitative determination of total urine protein by dipstick tests. It is therefore recommended to verify such a positive dipstick test result by methods based on a different analytical principle such as the Biuret method, turbidimetric or dye-binding methods, or to use these alternative methods from the beginning.

Excipients with known effect

Gabapentin capsules contain lactose. Patients with rare hereditary problems of galactose intolerance, the Lapp lactase deficiency or glucose-galactose malabsorption should not take this medicine.

Gabapentin capsules contain less than 1 mmol sodium (23 mg) per capsule. Patients on low sodium diets can be informed that this medicinal product is essentially 'sodium free'.

4.5. Interaction with other medicinal products and other forms of interaction

There are spontaneous and literature case reports of respiratory depression and/or sedation, and death associated with gabapentin when co-administered with CNS depressants, including opioid. In some of these reports, the authors considered the combination of gabapentin with opioids to be a particular concern in frail patients, in the elderly, in patients with serious underlying respiratory disease, with polypharmacy, and in those with substance abuse disorders.

In a study involving healthy volunteers (N=12), when a 60 mg controlled-release morphine capsule was administered 2 hours prior to a 600 mg gabapentin capsule, mean gabapentin AUC increased by 44% compared to gabapentin administered without morphine. Therefore, patients who require concomitant treatment with opioids should be carefully observed for signs of CNS depression, such as somnolence, sedation and respiratory depression and the dose of gabapentin or opioid should be reduced appropriately.

No interaction between gabapentin and phenobarbital, phenytoin, valproic acid or carbamazepine has been observed.

Gabapentin steady-state pharmacokinetics are similar for healthy subjects and patients with epilepsy receiving these antiepileptic agents.

Co-administration of gabapentin with oral contraceptives containing norethindrone and/or ethinyl estradiol, does not influence the steady-state pharmacokinetics of either component.

Co-administration of gabapentin with antacids containing aluminium and magnesium, reduces gabapentin bioavailability up to 24%. It is recommended that gabapentin be taken at the earliest two hours following antacid administration.

Renal excretion of gabapentin is unaltered by probenecid.

A slight decrease in renal excretion of gabapentin that is observed when it is co-administered with cimetidine is not expected to be of clinical importance.

4.6. Fertility, pregnancy and lactation

Pregnancy

Risk related to epilepsy and antiepileptic drugs (AEDs) in general

Specialist advice regarding the potential risk to a foetus caused by both seizures and antiepileptic treatment should be given to women of childbearing potential, and especially to women planning for pregnancy and women who are pregnant. The need for antiepileptic treatment should be reviewed when a woman is planning to become pregnant. In women being treated for epilepsy, no sudden discontinuation of antiepileptic therapy should be undertaken as this may lead to breakthrough seizures, which could have serious consequences for both mother and child. Monotherapy should be preferred whenever possible because therapy with multiple AEDs could be associated with a higher risk of congenital malformations than monotherapy, depending on the antiepileptics used.

Risk related to gabapentin

Gabapentin crosses the human placenta.

Data from a Nordic observational study of more than 1700 pregnancies exposed to gabapentin in the first trimester showed no higher risk of major congenital malformations among the children exposed to gabapentin compared to the unexposed children and compared to the children exposed to pregabalin, lamotrigine and pregabalin or lamotrigine. Likewise, no increased risk of neurodevelopmental disorders was observed in children exposed to gabapentin during pregnancy.

There was limited evidence of a higher risk of low birth weight and preterm birth but not of stillbirth, small for gestational age, low Apgar score at 5 minutes and microcephaly in newborns of women exposed to gabapentin.

Studies in animals have shown reproductive toxicity (see section 5.3).

Gabapentin can be used during the first trimester of pregnancy if clinically needed.

Neonatal withdrawal syndrome has been reported in newborns exposed in utero to gabapentin.

Co-exposure to gabapentin and opioids during pregnancy may increase the risk of neonatal withdrawal syndrome. Newborns should be monitored carefully.

Breast-feeding

Gabapentin is excreted in human milk. Because the effect on the breast-fed infant is unknown, caution should be exercised when gabapentin is administered to a breast-feeding mother. Gabapentin should be used in breast-feeding mothers only if the benefits clearly outweigh the risks.

Fertility

There is no effect on fertility in animal studies (see section 5.3).

4.7. Effects on ability to drive and use machines

Gabapentin may have minor or moderate influence on the ability to drive and use machines. Gabapentin acts on the central nervous system and may cause drowsiness, dizziness or other related symptoms. Even, if they were only of mild or moderate degree, these undesirable effects could be potentially dangerous in patients driving or operating machinery. This is especially true at the beginning of the treatment and after increase in dose.

4.8. Undesirable effects

The adverse reactions observed during clinical studies conducted in epilepsy (adjunctive and monotherapy) and neuropathic pain have been provided in a single list below by class and frequency: very common (≥ 1/10); common (≥ 1/100 to< 1/10); uncommon (≥ 1/1,000 to < 1/100); rare (≥ 1/10,000 to < 1/1,000); very rare (< 1/10,000). Where an adverse reaction was seen at different frequencies in clinical studies, it was assigned to the highest frequency reported.

Additional reactions reported from post-marketing experience are included as frequency Not known (cannot be estimated from the available data) in italics in the list below.

Within each frequency grouping, undesirable effects are presented in order of decreasing seriousness.

System organ class

Adverse drug reactions

Infections and infestations

Very Common

viral infection

Common

pneumonia, respiratory infection, urinary tract infection, infection, otitis media

Blood and the lymphatic system disorders

Common

leucopenia

Not known

Thrombocytopenia

Immune system disorders

Uncommon

allergic reactions (e.g. urticaria)

Not known

hypersensitivity syndrome (a systemic reaction with a variable presentation that can include fever, rash, hepatitis, lymphadenopathy, eosinophilia, and sometimes other signs and symptoms), anaphylaxis (see section 4.4)

Metabolism and nutrition disorders

Common

anorexia, increased appetite

Uncommon

hyperglycaemia (most often observed in patients with diabetes)

Rare

hypoglycaemia (most often observed in patients with diabetes)

Not known

hyponatraemia

Psychiatric disorders

Common

hostility, confusion and emotional lability, depression, anxiety, nervousness, thinking abnormal

Uncommon

Not known

agitation

suicidal ideation, hallucinations, Drug dependence (see section 4.4)

Nervous system disorders

Very Common

somnolence, dizziness, ataxia

Common

convulsions, hyperkinesias, dysarthria, amnesia, tremor, insomnia, headache, sensations such as paresthesia, hypaesthesia, coordination abnormal, nystagmus, increased, decreased, or absent reflexes

Uncommon

hypokinesia, mental impairment

Rare

loss of consciousness

Not known

other movement disorders (e.g. choreoathetosis, dyskinesia, dystonia)

Eye disorders

Common

visual disturbances such as amblyopia, diplopia

Ear and labyrinth disorders

Common

vertigo

Not known

tinnitus

Cardiac disorders

Uncommon

palpitations

Vascular disorders

Common

hypertension, vasodilatation

Respiratory, thoracic and mediastinal disorders

Common

dyspnoea, bronchitis, pharyngitis, cough, rhinitis

Rare

respiratory depression

Gastrointestinal disorders

Common

vomiting, nausea, dental abnormalities, gingivitis, diarrhoea, abdominal pain, dyspepsia, constipation, dry mouth or throat, flatulence

Uncommon

dysphagia

Not known

pancreatitis

Hepatobiliary disorders

Not known

hepatitis, jaundice

Skin and subcutaneous tissue disorders

Common

facial oedema, purpura most often described as bruises resulting from physical trauma, rash, pruritus, acne

Not known

Stevens-Johnson syndrome, toxic epidermal necrolysis,angioedema, erythema multiforme, alopecia, drug rash with eosinophilia and systemic symptoms (see section 4.4)

Musculoskeletal and connective tissue disorders

Common

arthralgia, myalgia, back pain, twitching

Not known

rhabdomyolysis, myoclonus, Exacerbation of myasthenia gravis

Renal and urinary disorder

Not known

acute renal failure, incontinence

Reproductive system and breast disorders

Common

impotence

Not known

breast hypertrophy, gynaecomastia, sexual dysfunction (including changes in libido, ejaculation disorders and anorgasmia)

General disorders and administration site conditions

Very Common

fatigue, fever

Common

peripheral oedema, abnormal gait, asthenia, pain, malaise, flu syndrome

Uncommon

generalized oedema

Not known

withdrawal reactions*, chest pain. Sudden unexplained deaths have been reported where a causal relationship to treatment with gabapentin has not been established.

Investigations

Common

Uncommon

WBC (white blood cell count) decreased, weight gain

elevated liver function tests SGOT (AST), SGPT (ALT) and bilirubin

Not known

blood creatine phosphokinase increased

Injury, poisoning and procedural complications

Common

accidental injury, fracture, abrasion

Uncommon

fall

Description under the ADR table:

* After discontinuation or dose reduction of short-term and long-term treatment with Gabapentin withdrawal symptoms have been observed. Withdrawal symptoms may occur shortly after discontinuation or dose reduction, usually within 48 hours (see section 4.4).

Under treatment with gabapentin cases of acute pancreatitis were reported. Causality with gabapentin is unclear (see section 4.4).

In patients on haemodialysis due to end-stage renal failure, myopathy with elevated creatine kinase levels has been reported.

Respiratory tract infections, otitis media, convulsions and bronchitis were reported only in clinical studies in children. Additionally, in clinical studies in children, aggressive behaviour and hyperkinesias were reported commonly.

Reporting of suspected adverse reactions

Reporting suspected adverse reactions after authorisation of the medicinal product is important. It allows continued monitoring of the benefit/risk balance of the medicinal product. Healthcare professionals are asked to report any suspected adverse reactions via the Yellow Card Scheme at www.mhra.gov.uk/yellowcard or search for MHRA Yellow Card in the Google Play or Apple App Store.

4.9. Overdose

Patients should be informed of the signs and symptoms of overdose and to ensure that family and friends are also aware of these signs and to seek immediate medical help if they occur.

Acute, life-threatening toxicity has not been observed with gabapentin overdoses of up to 49 g. Symptoms of the overdoses included dizziness, double vision, slurred speech, drowsiness, loss of consciousness, lethargy and mild diarrhoea. All patients recovered fully with supportive care. Reduced absorption of gabapentin at higher doses may limit drug absorption at the time of overdosing and, hence, minimize toxicity from overdoses.

Overdoses of gabapentin, particularly in combination with other CNS depressant medications, may result in coma.

Although gabapentin can be removed by haemodialysis, based on prior experience it is usually not required. However, in patients with severe renal impairment, haemodialysis may be indicated.

An oral lethal dose of gabapentin was not identified in mice and rats given doses as high as 8000 mg/kg. Signs of acute toxicity in animals included ataxia, laboured breathing, ptosis, hypoactivity, or excitation.