methocarbamol at a glance
Medicine class
Centrally acting muscle relaxant
Licensed use
Symptom relief for painful muscle tension in adults, especially in the lower back
Administration
Swallow film-coated tablets with sufficient water
Driving and alcohol
It may cause dizziness or drowsiness. Avoid alcohol and do not drive or use machinery if affected.
What is methocarbamol used for?
The selected products are licensed in adults for symptomatic treatment of:
Painful muscle tension, particularly low-back pain or lumbago
How does methocarbamol work?
Methocarbamol acts within the central nervous system, reducing polysynaptic reflex activity in the spinal cord and subcortical centres. This decreases painful muscle tension without acting directly at the muscle motor endplate.
methocarbamol preparations and strengths
Tablet
Route: Oral
Strengths: 750 mg, 1500 mg
How to take methocarbamol
Take methocarbamol exactly as prescribed and swallow the tablets with sufficient water. The score line on the neuraxpharm tablet is only to help swallowing; it does not divide the tablet into equal amounts.
Do not drink alcohol while taking methocarbamol.
Do not drive or operate machinery if you feel sleepy, dizzy or otherwise impaired.
methocarbamol side effects
Common or expected effects
- No effects are classified as common in the selected product information. Reported non-urgent effects include drowsiness, headache, dizziness, metallic taste, nausea, vomiting, rash and itching; reported frequencies vary.
Get urgent medical advice
- Sudden facial, tongue or throat swelling, breathing difficulty or collapse
- Seizure or loss of consciousness
- Marked confusion, severe visual disturbance, unusually slow heartbeat or symptomatic low blood pressure
methocarbamol in pregnancy
Experience in pregnancy is insufficient and the potential risk is unknown. The selected product information says methocarbamol should not be used during pregnancy. Contact the prescriber if pregnant, planning pregnancy or if pregnancy occurs while taking it.
methocarbamol while breastfeeding
The selected product information advises against use because transfer into human milk is unknown. LactMed reports no direct breastfeeding data but states that necessary treatment does not automatically require breastfeeding to stop, with monitoring of the infant for sedation, poor feeding and poor weight gain. A prescriber or specialist breastfeeding medicines service should assess the individual situation.
methocarbamol interactions
Methocarbamol can increase central nervous system effects or alter the action of certain medicines.
Alcohol
Can increase sedation and other effects; avoid alcohol.
Opioids, barbiturates and other centrally acting sedatives
May mutually increase drowsiness, impaired coordination and other central nervous system effects.
Common questions about methocarbamol
Answers are fully visible for fast scanning and source review.
What is methocarbamol used for?
The selected products are licensed for symptom relief of painful muscle tension in adults, particularly low-back muscle tension or lumbago.
Does methocarbamol treat the cause of back pain?
It is a symptomatic treatment: it may reduce painful muscle tension but does not necessarily treat the underlying cause of pain.
Sources
These sources were used to prepare and review this medicine page.
Prepared and reviewed by the iatroX editorial team.