Studies have shown that melatonin can reduce chronic pain
Dec 18, 2024Ehotyshamull Joy
Melatonin, which is used for insomnia and circadian rhythm disorders, may be effective in reducing chronic pain, according to a new study.
Professor Myung Seung-kwon (Family Medicine Specialist and Director of Cancer Prevention and Screening Center) of the Department of Cancer and Biomedical Sciences at the National Cancer Center International Cancer Graduate School (President Eun-sook Lee) said this in a meta-analysis that synthesized the results of 30 clinical trials on the analgesic efficacy of melatonin published in international journals from 2005 to 2019 together with Oh Si-si, an assistant professor in the Department of Family Medicine at Seoul National University Hospital.
The results of the study were published May 21 in the Journal of Clinical Medicine, an international journal of SCI-E.
The study found that a meta-analysis of 30 randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trials of melatonin and pain through a literature search of leading medical databases such as PubMed, EBMBASE and the Cochrane Library found that melatonin significantly reduced chronic pain compared to placebo in five trials, and that there was a significant effect even when only four high-quality trials were combined (standardised mean difference: -0.62, 95% CI: (-1.01, –0.23)).
Professor Myung Seung-kwonsaid, "Melatonin is mainly used to treat sleep-related disorders such as insomnia, and in addition to laboratory studies and animal studies, human clinical trials, systematic reviews, and meta-analyses have been published on its analgesic effect.
However, the results differed between individual studies, and previous meta-analyses included open-label trials with low quality evidence, and there was a lack of analysis based on the quality of the studies, so the evidence was not definitively established. This meta-analysis looked at only randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trials that were known to be of high quality, and found that they were not effective for acute pain, but were effective in reducing chronic pain."
"Melatonin is interpreted to reduce chronic pain by acting on melatonin receptors in areas important for pain regulation in the brain and spinal cord to reduce inflammation and tissue damage through anti-nociceptive and anti-algesic effects, as well as anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects," he said.
"No effect was observed in acute pain, suggesting that an additional dose of melatonin, which is less effective, had little effect, because there was no adequate time for melatonin to reach maximum plasma concentrations before surgery or procedure, and most clinical trials for acute pain included opiate analgesics or nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs in the placebo group."
However, Prof. Myung emphasized the limitations of the results of this study, saying, "Although 30 trials were included in this meta-analysis, only 5 trials were on the efficacy of chronic pain and only 4 were of high quality, so the analgesic effect of melatonin on chronic pain has not been clearly identified, but only confirmed its potential."
Melatonin is sold as a dietary supplement overseas. However, in Korea, it is classified as a non-reimbursed drug and a prescription drug. In Korea, consumers need to consult a psychiatrist and prescribe melatonin to consume melatonin, so it has to be purchased at a relatively high price.
Comments (0)
There are no comments for this article. Be the first one to leave a message!