Comparison Between Efficacy of Gabapentin and Carbamazepine in Neuropathic Pain of Guillain-Barré Syndrome Patients

This randomized controlled trial compared gabapentin with carbamazepine for the treatment of nerve-related pain in patients with Guillain-Barré syndrome who received plasma exchange. The study tested the hypothesis that pain scores after seven days of treatment differed between the two groups. The study was conducted at Medical Unit III, Lahore General Hospital, Lahore, and included 60 patients of either sex aged 16-65 years. Patients were randomly assigned by a lottery method to two equal groups of 30 patients each. One group received gabapentin 300 mg three times daily, while the other received carbamazepine 100 mg three times daily. Both treatments were administered after plasma exchange, and patients were followed for seven days. Pain severity was assessed using a numeric rating scale before treatment and after seven days. Mean pain scores after treatment were compared between the groups to assess their relative effectiveness. Age, sex, duration of Guillain-Barré syndrome, smoking, alcohol use, diabetes, and hypertension were recorded, and comparisons were also performed within subgroups defined by these characteristics.