Has anyone tried Capsaicin (Qutenza) for neuropathy in their feet?

Posted by Steve @stevebern, Aug 17, 2022

Hello everyone, I’m not sure if I’m allowed to post a link like this, and if I’m not, please remove it, but… someone (non-medical person) sent this to me as a possible treatment.

I have idiopathic non-diabetic neuropathy of the feet, and would definitely try this (although the way it gets applied indicates it could be harmful if any of it gets on any other area), but at this point I’ll try anything.

So, has anyone tried this? It seems to be an ingredient in pepper spray, if you can believe it.

https://www.qutenza.com/

Interested in more discussions like this? Go to the Neuropathy Support Group.

I recently had my second dose of the QUTENZA patch. Initially, I was concerned because I didn't notice a significant improvement after but it has been 2 weeks now and I noticing that I have no symptoms for the majority of the day. I am hoping that this is a cumulative affect.

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@26sabrina

I recently had my second dose of the QUTENZA patch. Initially, I was concerned because I didn't notice a significant improvement after but it has been 2 weeks now and I noticing that I have no symptoms for the majority of the day. I am hoping that this is a cumulative affect.

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Hi, 26sabrina (@26sabrina)

That's great news! Can you tell us what sort of neuropathy you have? And what sorts of symptoms you were having and to what degree did they go away? How long the symptoms remain away – that would be of interest, too. It's always great news to learn of a therapy that's working, even if only partially,
Ray (@ray666)

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@26sabrina

I recently had my second dose of the QUTENZA patch. Initially, I was concerned because I didn't notice a significant improvement after but it has been 2 weeks now and I noticing that I have no symptoms for the majority of the day. I am hoping that this is a cumulative affect.

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@26sabrina please tell us what that is. Thank.

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I have diabetic neuropathy in both feet and had 1 Qutenza treatment. It is administered in a medical setting, is non invasive and consists of wraps and topical applications. Takes about an hour and worth trying for pain.

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@ray666

Hi, 26sabrina (@26sabrina)

That's great news! Can you tell us what sort of neuropathy you have? And what sorts of symptoms you were having and to what degree did they go away? How long the symptoms remain away – that would be of interest, too. It's always great news to learn of a therapy that's working, even if only partially,
Ray (@ray666)

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I have idiopathic peripheral neuropathy in both feet. I got my first dose the end of April and the second dose a couple of weeks ago. It is applied by a health care person and the whole process takes about an hour. The relief is not immediate but I did start to notice a decrease in pain and burning in about 3 days. Over the course of the next couple of months I notice that I was only having pain and burning in my very front foot and toes when very cold or hot. Now after the second dose I only have pain and burning in my toes when hot or cold. Very rarely do I experience burning in my toes at night that makes it hard to sleep.
The pharmacy gave me 4 doses and I intend to use each of them. I will decided after that if the product is actually effective enough to continue.
I hope this answers everyone's questions.

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Did your neurologist prescribe it?

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@judee1948

It is not painful at all. I had alittle burning sensation while I was wrapped. After, for about 2-3 hrs I felt like I had sunburned my feet. They gave me like a Aloe gel to apply and that totally helped. Before the procedure, They told me to get capzasin cream (this is a way smaller dose than the patches) and rub some on feet to make sure I won't have a bad reaction. I did and I was fine.

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I also am being scheduled for qutenza. I also tried the OTC capcaisin cream. It worked great on shoulder, but I put on tops of feet. I thought I was going to die, it hurt so bad, like I stuck my feet in a barrel of acid. Tried to wash off and that made it worse. I am now scared to death of what its going to do in the dr. office application. They prescribed a topical anesthetic to use an hour before going in, which I did not have with the OTC capsaicin, but Qutenza is 80 times stronger than OTC. Help, the OTC cream almost killed me.

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I did and it burned like crazy!

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@steven120566

I also am being scheduled for qutenza. I also tried the OTC capcaisin cream. It worked great on shoulder, but I put on tops of feet. I thought I was going to die, it hurt so bad, like I stuck my feet in a barrel of acid. Tried to wash off and that made it worse. I am now scared to death of what its going to do in the dr. office application. They prescribed a topical anesthetic to use an hour before going in, which I did not have with the OTC capsaicin, but Qutenza is 80 times stronger than OTC. Help, the OTC cream almost killed me.

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I've had 3 applications. If the Dr follows the package procedure, it will burn a bit while it is is on and a little less after the feet are washed as per protocol. You will feel some burning for a few hours after but I did notice starting the next morning some relief from pain and burning that lasted for a bit over 2 months. I think the discomfort during the applications is worth the end result.

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