Understanding What Metaxalone Is Used For
Metaxalone (
Skelaxin®) is a prescription muscle relaxant used to treat muscle spasms. It is approved for use along with rest, physical therapy, and other treatments to relieve pain from acute (short-term) painful muscle spasms. Metaxalone may be less likely to cause drowsiness and "grogginess," compared to other muscle relaxants.
A muscle spasm is an uncontrollable
contraction of a muscle. Muscle spasms can cause pain, tenderness, and stiffness. They are a frequent
cause of back pain. Most often, muscle spasms are caused by injury, overuse, or similar problems (like sleeping in a strange position). Metaxalone usually works quite well for these types of muscle spasms.
How Does Metaxalone Work?
It is not clear exactly how metaxalone helps to relieve muscle spasms. However, the drug is known to work mostly in the central nervous system (the brain and the spinal cord), not directly on the muscles.
Metaxalone Use in Children
Metaxalone is approved for use in children as young as 12 years old. Talk with your healthcare provider about the benefits and risks of using the medication in children. The
metaxalone dosage for children age 12 and older is the same as the dosage for adults.
Off-Label Metaxalone Uses
On occasion, your healthcare provider may recommend metaxalone for something other than the conditions discussed in this article. Sometimes, it is used in an
off-label fashion to help relieve
fibromyalgia pain.
