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Topical gel helped me with chronic spine pain

Posted by Donald @donfeld, Apr 2, 2020

I have croinc pain in my spine since 2006 with three fusion and many injection where I haven't had a good night sleep in last 3 years. I recently try a gel called Diclofenac Sodium Topical Gel 1%. is mainly used four hands knees and feet joints, but I tried it on my spine and hip where I have pain levels as high as six and walk with a limp. After two days of using this gel I am now can walk a mile without limping and sleep a full night without severe pain to wake me up every 2 hours. I wanted to share this with all of you because your spine is full of joints as well as your hip and this might be something you should look into as I am extremely excited and now I can sleep 7 hours to get a full night's sleep. Is mainly used for arthritis and osteoarthritis and it works.

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irene5 Irene Estes | @irene5 | Apr 4, 2020
In reply to @wisco50 "Sounds like it was cheaper for you. The American prescription version was $40 + per tube..." + (show)
@wisco50

Sounds like it was cheaper for you. The American prescription version was $40 + per tube with my insurance. Which was much more pricey here than my friends would get if for me in other countries .

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@wisco50 Sorry about that price! I wish everyone could pay the same amount for the same product! That would be nice!

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iceblue | @iceblue | Apr 4, 2020
In reply to @wisco50 "I don’t know if you travel but it is sold over the counter in many countries..." + (show)
@wisco50

I don’t know if you travel but it is sold over the counter in many countries and MUCH more cheaply than in America as a prescription! Right down to the appearance of tube it is in. I have had some from Mexico, Caribbean and when I was in Italy I found some 2% strength. Pharmacy here with my insurance wanted sl over $40 per tube. I’ve paid $10-12 in other countries. My friend from Seattle stocks up if they are skiing in Canada.

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@wisco50 - I'm pretty sure this medication is not available OTC in Canada as I just had a prescription filled. It is compounded where I buy it (Walmart Pharmacy), and does not come in a tube. It was prescribed for me to help control arthritic pain. Sometimes it does the trick, sometimes I need to supplement it. It does not work well on the SFN because it's mostly the soles of my feet (burning) and it seems that the skin in that area is too thick for the cream to penetrate.

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1 reply
wisco50 | @wisco50 | Apr 4, 2020
In reply to @iceblue "@wisco50 - I'm pretty sure this medication is not available OTC in Canada as I just..." + (show)
@iceblue

@wisco50 - I'm pretty sure this medication is not available OTC in Canada as I just had a prescription filled. It is compounded where I buy it (Walmart Pharmacy), and does not come in a tube. It was prescribed for me to help control arthritic pain. Sometimes it does the trick, sometimes I need to supplement it. It does not work well on the SFN because it's mostly the soles of my feet (burning) and it seems that the skin in that area is too thick for the cream to penetrate.

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Just saying my nursing school classmate does buy it there OTC. Their family lives in Seattle and goes to somewhere in Canada’s western provinces to ski each year. She says she stocks up on it. I saw it in her bathroom when I visited them in August, so? I personally have bought it in Italy and Caribbean and my friend brings it back to me from Mexico. Other name for it is Diclofenac

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1 reply
Donald | @donfeld | Apr 4, 2020

Diclofenac is what I am talking about. Thanks for your input.

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iceblue | @iceblue | Apr 5, 2020
In reply to @wisco50 "Just saying my nursing school classmate does buy it there OTC. Their family lives in Seattle..." + (show)
@wisco50

Just saying my nursing school classmate does buy it there OTC. Their family lives in Seattle and goes to somewhere in Canada’s western provinces to ski each year. She says she stocks up on it. I saw it in her bathroom when I visited them in August, so? I personally have bought it in Italy and Caribbean and my friend brings it back to me from Mexico. Other name for it is Diclofenac

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@wisco50 - I just did a bit more research and see the OTC med is also sold under the brand name of Voltaren. I have a tube of that, and it is definitely available OTC (I bought mine at Walmart); a generic version is probably also sold OTC. I am not sure what ingredients the compounded version contains that is different, but both doctors who have prescribed it have told me that the prescription version is superior - and having used both, I would agree.

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wisco50 | @wisco50 | Apr 5, 2020
In reply to @iceblue "@wisco50 - I just did a bit more research and see the OTC med is also..." + (show)
@iceblue

@wisco50 - I just did a bit more research and see the OTC med is also sold under the brand name of Voltaren. I have a tube of that, and it is definitely available OTC (I bought mine at Walmart); a generic version is probably also sold OTC. I am not sure what ingredients the compounded version contains that is different, but both doctors who have prescribed it have told me that the prescription version is superior - and having used both, I would agree.

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It would be interesting to know! Surely the compounding pharmacy can tell the patient, as we have a right to know what we are taking! Let us know, please, if you find out! Yes, Voltaren is a brand name for generic diclofenac. Almost all prescription NSAID capsules or pills are (eventually) not tolerated by my stomach. Except for aspirin, go figure (taken c food!).

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1 reply
iceblue | @iceblue | Apr 5, 2020
In reply to @wisco50 "It would be interesting to know! Surely the compounding pharmacy can tell the patient, as we..." + (show)
@wisco50

It would be interesting to know! Surely the compounding pharmacy can tell the patient, as we have a right to know what we are taking! Let us know, please, if you find out! Yes, Voltaren is a brand name for generic diclofenac. Almost all prescription NSAID capsules or pills are (eventually) not tolerated by my stomach. Except for aspirin, go figure (taken c food!).

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@wisco50 - I just pulled out my container to check the ingredients and I'm a bit embarrassed. Here's what it says:

10% Diclofenac powder in diffusimax gel. Apply to affected area(s) twice a day.

TEN percent - not ONE percent 😮 That could be why there is no comparison with OTC meds 😉

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1 reply
Donald | @donfeld | Apr 5, 2020
In reply to @iceblue "@wisco50 - I just pulled out my container to check the ingredients and I'm a bit..." + (show)
@iceblue

@wisco50 - I just pulled out my container to check the ingredients and I'm a bit embarrassed. Here's what it says:

10% Diclofenac powder in diffusimax gel. Apply to affected area(s) twice a day.

TEN percent - not ONE percent 😮 That could be why there is no comparison with OTC meds 😉

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Are you telling me there's a gel available but the same ingredients at 10% rather than 1%. Where did you get it from and what's the prescription or is it over the counter?

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1 reply
iceblue | @iceblue | Apr 5, 2020
In reply to @donfeld "Are you telling me there's a gel available but the same ingredients at 10% rather than..." + (show)
@donfeld

Are you telling me there's a gel available but the same ingredients at 10% rather than 1%. Where did you get it from and what's the prescription or is it over the counter?

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Yes @donfold - that's what I'm saying. The 10% version is compounded and is definitely a prescription.

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Mentor
Chris Trout, Volunteer Mentor | @artscaping | Apr 6, 2020

Hi @iceblue, @donfld, @wisco60, Good afternoon. Just because you mentioned MX for Voltaren, I just wanted to show you what I have been getting from my friends in San Miguel de Allende. My rheumatologist told me to use the cream because the insurance wouldn't pay for patches. However, if I tried the cream for a month and said it didn't work, she could order the patches for me.

I decided to check with my friend in MX and lo and behold the picture shows what I got. They come in different sizes. I get the large one for my cranky knee and shoulder,, the small ones for arms and legs.

It is a 24 hour time release with 30 mg of voltaren or diclofenco.

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