Provigil improves wakefulness
Although its mechanism of action is unknown, Provigil appears to be unlike classic stimulants. We investigated this generality by testing the selectivity of this compound for wake-promoting effects (e.g., relative to locomotor effects) and homeostatic sleep responses after drug-induced waking relative to the prototypical stimulant methamphetamine (METH).
Continuous measures of electroencephalogram (EEG) sleep-wakefulness, locomotor activity (LMA) and body temperature (Tb) were obtained from adult male Wistar rats 3 days before and after treatment with Provigil (30, 100 and 300 mg/kg i.p.), 0.25% methylcellulose (vehicle) or METH (0.5 and 1.0 mg/kg i.p.). Individually housed rats in a 24-h light-dark cycle (LD 12:12) were treated 5 h after lights-on (CT-5).
Wake-Up Time with Provigil
In January 2003, US Air Force majors William Umbach and Harry Schmidt faced court-martial after a friendly fire incident in Afghanistan that killed four Canadian soldiers and wounded eight others. During a pretrial hearing, Umbach’s lawyer spilled one of the Pentagon’s dirty little secrets – the pilots had been on speed when they dropped the fatal bomb.
Their judgment was impaired, he claimed, because superiors pressured them to prepare for the mission by taking Dexedrine, a practice he described as common. The charges were dropped, but not before the revelation sparked public outrage: Why were our boys flying $30 million jets on uppers?
Provigil Prevents Weight Gain?
“Half of the clinical studies of potential pharmacologic interventions to prevent olanzapine-associated weight gain have been negative, at huge expense. We hope that this approach will help identify drugs with a better chance of working,” lead investigator James L. Roerig, PharmD, from the University of North Dakota School of Medicine, in Fargo, told Medscape Psychiatry.
The method developed by Dr. Roerig and colleagues uses brief placebo-controlled trials with normal volunteers to determine whether a prospective treatment drug deserves study in clinical trials.
The process starts with a brief trial to show that the main treatment agent will produce the target adverse effect in normal volunteers; it is followed by a short placebo-controlled study to see whether adding the candidate drug reduces the adverse effect enough in normal volunteers to signal that the test drug is likely to work and deserves further study.
Provigil and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome
Chronic Fatigue Syndrome is a condition marked by extreme fatigue, muscle pain, reduction in cognitive abilities and a host of other symptoms. It is extremely difficult to diagnose as there is no definitive test that can be done to tell if you have the syndrome. While no one knows what causes it, some think that it may be triggered by certain environmental toxins, viruses or bacteria, and also have a genetic predisposition.
This can be a debilitating condition and it’s no wonder that people are desperately seeking new treatment options for Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. While there is no treatment specifically for chronic fatigue, there are treatments that can help alleviate the symptoms. Here are some treatment options including medicines and more natural treatments.
Medications and Procedures
Provigil is a medicine sometimes used to treat the symptom which can help with mental alertness and positive attitude. It is relatively free from side effects and need only be taken once a day. Effexor is an antidepressant that can help alleviate some of the pain associated with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome as well as help with fatigue and mental clarity. Neurontin is an anticonvulsant which may be effective in treating sleep disorders, headaches, anxiety and mood problems as well as the pain associated with chronic fatigue.