Drug Design, Development and Therapy (Mar 2023)
Tapentadol: A Review of Experimental Pharmacology Studies, Clinical Trials, and Recent Findings
Abstract
Fahad S Alshehri Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, College of Pharmacy, Umm Al-Qura University, Makkah, Saudi ArabiaCorrespondence: Fahad S Alshehri, Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, College of Pharmacy, Umm Al‑ Qura University, Makkah, 24382, Saudi Arabia, Email [email protected]: Tapentadol is an analgesic compound that acts centrally to attenuate pain. Previous studies have shown that tapentadol has dual mechanisms of action as a mu-opioid receptor agonist and noradrenaline re-uptake inhibition. Therefore, tapentadol provides a great advantage over classic opioids in pain management from nociceptive to neuropathic. Cumulative evidence from in vitro data suggests that tapentadol effect of norepinephrine re-uptake could be a new target that overcomes other classic opioids in chronic neuropathic pain. Compared to tramadol and other opioids, tapentadol is associated with fewer adverse effects than tramadol. Tapentadol is a new alternative to treat acute, chronic, and neuropathic pain. Thus, this review article was focused on understanding the studies that led to the development of tapentadol as a novel analgesic drug and its advantages over conventional opioids. Thus, tapentadol is a good alternative with fewer adverse effects and is available for human use.Keywords: opioids, chronic pain, neuropathic pain, clinical trials
