Comparative effectiveness of gabapentin and pregabalin on reduction in alcohol use: A nationwide observational cohort study

In this large, nationwide cohort, treatment with gabapentin and pregabalin were associated with reductions in reported alcohol consumption, compared to matched unexposed comparators. Initiation of pregabalin was associated with greater reductions than with gabapentin, particularly among those with AUD and those with highest severity of alcohol use. Known safety concerns and risk of misuse should be considered when prescribing these medications. Randomized clinical trials directly comparing these medications are necessary to validate these findings.

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Publication Details

Journal
medRxiv
Published
2026-01-15
DOI
https://doi.org/10.64898/2026.01.13.26344031
Primary Topic
Substance Abuse Treatment and Outcomes
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
0.00

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article

Comparative effectiveness of gabapentin and pregabalin on reduction in alcohol use: A nationwide observational cohort study

Christopher T. Rentsch, Joshua C. Gray, Tommy Gunawan, Mehdi Farokhnia et al.
medRxiv
Substance Abuse Treatment and Outcomes
article

Comparative effectiveness of gabapentin and pregabalin on reduction in alcohol use: A nationwide observational cohort study

Christopher T. Rentsch, Joshua C. Gray, Tommy Gunawan, Mehdi Farokhnia, Aaron P. Fox, Thomas S. Wingo, Mingjian Shi, John Tazare, Aliza P. Wingo, Lorenzo Leggio, Henry R. Kranzler
article en

Abstract

In this large, nationwide cohort, treatment with gabapentin and pregabalin were associated with reductions in reported alcohol consumption, compared to matched unexposed comparators. Initiation of pregabalin was associated with greater reductions than with gabapentin, particularly among those with AUD and those with highest severity of alcohol use. Known safety concerns and risk of misuse should be considered when prescribing these medications. Randomized clinical trials directly comparing these medications are necessary to validate these findings.

medRxiv
Henry M. Jackson Foundation (US), National Institute on Drug Abuse (US), Johns Hopkins University (US), Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences (US), Georgetown University (US), Brown University (US), Johns Hopkins Medicine (US), Georgetown University Medical Center (US), Yale University (US), VA Connecticut Healthcare System (US), London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine (GB), National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (US), Philadelphia VA Medical Center (US), VA Northern California Health Care System (US), University of California Davis Medical Center (US), University of California, Davis (US)
U.S. Department of Defense, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Henry M. Jackson Foundation, Eli Lilly and Company, National Institutes of Health, National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, National Institute on Drug Abuse, NIH Clinical Center
Good health and well-being
Openalex Percentile: Top 87%
Substance Abuse Treatment and Outcomes
DOIOpen Access PDFOpenAlex
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