Comparison of the Effects of Tapentadol and Oxycodone on Gastrointestinal and Colonic Transit in Humans
Status:
Completed
Trial end date:
2011-12-01
Target enrollment:
Participant gender:
Summary
Tapentadol is FDA approved for the treatment of moderate to severe acute pain. Due to the
dual mechanism of action as an opioid agonist and norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor, there is
potential for off label use in chronic pain.
Tapentadol is a new molecular entity that is structurally similar to tramadol. Tapentadol is
a centrally-acting analgesic with a dual mode of action as an agonist at the mu-opioid
receptor and as a norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor. These two actions are synergistic in
pain relief. While its action reflects aspects of tramadol and morphine, its ability to
control pain is more on the order of hydrocodone and oxycodone.
Its dual mode of action provides analgesia at similar levels of more potent narcotic
analgesics such as hydrocodone, oxycodone, and meperidine with a more tolerable side effect
profile. Clinical studies showed that tapentadol effectively relieves moderate to severe pain
in various pain care settings. In addition, it was reported to be associated with
significantly fewer treatment discontinuations due to a significantly lower incidence of
gastrointestinal-related adverse events compared with equivalent doses of oxycodone. The
combination of these reduced treatment discontinuation rates and tapentadol efficacy for the
relief of moderate to severe nociceptive and neuropathic pain may offer an improvement in
pain therapy by increasing patient compliance with their treatment regimen.