🇮🇪Ireland
16°C Partly Cloudy · Dublin
Live Updates
--:--:-- IST
Writer Login
Latest
University of Galway to Lead New €64.5m Research Ireland Rinn Medical Devices Centre Chanelle Pharma Renews Historic Partnership with Galway Races Summer Festival 2026 The Distortion of Irish GDP: How 'Phantom Exports' Are Reshaping the Biopharma Landscape The Anatomy of a Biologics Warning Letter: Deconstructing Genzyme Waterford’s FDA Audit The Dublin-Backed Roll-Up Reshaping UK Pharma Packaging: Inside Woodberry's Double Acquisition The Pill That Promised a Revolution: Why Eli Lilly's Foundayo Is Launching Slower Than Wall Street Expected Speed Over Scrutiny? The High-Stakes Gamble Behind the NHS's New Fast-Track Drug Pilots A Global Milestone for Wellness: Chanelle McCoy Health Secures Historic Dual SFDA and European Novel Food Regulatory Approvals University of Galway to Lead New €64.5m Research Ireland Rinn Medical Devices Centre Chanelle Pharma Renews Historic Partnership with Galway Races Summer Festival 2026 The Distortion of Irish GDP: How 'Phantom Exports' Are Reshaping the Biopharma Landscape The Anatomy of a Biologics Warning Letter: Deconstructing Genzyme Waterford’s FDA Audit The Dublin-Backed Roll-Up Reshaping UK Pharma Packaging: Inside Woodberry's Double Acquisition The Pill That Promised a Revolution: Why Eli Lilly's Foundayo Is Launching Slower Than Wall Street Expected Speed Over Scrutiny? The High-Stakes Gamble Behind the NHS's New Fast-Track Drug Pilots A Global Milestone for Wellness: Chanelle McCoy Health Secures Historic Dual SFDA and European Novel Food Regulatory Approvals

← All drug comparisons

Cymbalta vs Lyrica

Duloxetine  ·  Pregabalin

Two of the main treatments for nerve pain and fibromyalgia, reached from completely different directions — an antidepressant and an anticonvulsant.

At a glance

CymbaltaDuloxetine
LyricaPregabalin
Brand name
Cymbalta
Lyrica
Drug class
SNRI
Anticonvulsant
Route
Oral
Oral
Marketed by
Eli Lilly
CP Pharmaceuticals (Pfizer)
First FDA approval
3 Aug 2004
30 Dec 2004
US shortage
Not listed
Not listed

Key differences

What each one treats

CymbaltaDuloxetine

CYMBALTA ® is indicated for the treatment of: Major depressive disorder in adults Generalized anxiety disorder in adults and pediatric patients 7 years of age and older Diabetic peripheral neuropathic pain in adults Fibromyalgia in adults and pediatric patients 13 years of age and older Chronic musculoskeletal pain in adults CYMBALTA ® is a serotonin and norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor (SNRI) indicated for the treatment of the following conditions: Major depressive disorder (MDD) in adults ( 1 ) Generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) in adults and pediatric patients 7 years of age and older ( 1 ) Diabetic peripheral neuropathic pain (DPNP) in adults ( 1 ) Fibromyalgia (FM) in adults and pediatric patients 13 years of age and older ( 1 ) Chronic musculoskeletal pain in adults ( 1 )

LyricaPregabalin

LYRICA is indicated for: • Management of neuropathic pain associated with diabetic peripheral neuropathy • Management of postherpetic neuralgia • Adjunctive therapy for the treatment of partial-onset seizures in patients 1 month of age and older • Management of fibromyalgia • Management of neuropathic pain associated with spinal cord injury LYRICA is indicated for: • Neuropathic pain associated with diabetic peripheral neuropathy (DPN) ( 1 ) • Postherpetic neuralgia (PHN) ( 1 ) • Adjunctive therapy for the treatment of partial-onset seizures in patients 1 month of age and older ( 1 ) • Fibromyalgia ( 1 ) • Neuropathic pain associated with spinal cord injury ( 1 )

How each one works

CymbaltaSNRI

12.1 Mechanism of Action Although the exact mechanisms of the antidepressant, central pain inhibitory and anxiolytic actions of duloxetine in humans are unknown, these actions are believed to be related to its potentiation of serotonergic and noradrenergic activity in the CNS.

LyricaAnticonvulsant

12.1 Mechanism of Action LYRICA (pregabalin) binds with high affinity to the alpha 2 -delta site (an auxiliary subunit of voltage-gated calcium channels) in central nervous system tissues. Although the mechanism of action of pregabalin has not been fully elucidated, results with genetically modified mice and with compounds structurally related to pregabalin (such as gabapentin) suggest that binding to the alpha 2 -delta subunit may be involved in pregabalin's anti-nociceptive and antiseizure effects in animals. In animal models of nerve damage, pregabalin has been shown to reduce calcium-dependent release of pro-nociceptive neurotransmitters in the spinal cord, possibly by disrupting alpha …

Related comparisons

Zoloft VS Cymbalta Lexapro VS Cymbalta Cymbalta VS Effexor XR Lyrica VS Neurontin Lyrica VS Lamictal Lyrica VS Keppra

Read more

Cymbalta profile Lyrica profile SSRIs & SNRIs Anticonvulsants All comparisons
This is not medical advice, and not a recommendation of one drug over the other.

Which medicine is right for a given person depends on their diagnosis, other conditions, other medicines, kidney and liver function, pregnancy, and cost or reimbursement — none of which this page knows. Two drugs in the same class are not automatically interchangeable. Never start, stop or switch a prescription medicine on the basis of a web page; that decision belongs to you and your clinician or pharmacist.

Class and summary text is written by the Priya Life Science editorial team. Label, mechanism, route, manufacturer and approval data come from the U.S. FDA via the openFDA API; shortage status from the FDA Drug Shortage Database. Approvals, indications and brand names differ between the US, EU/Ireland (EMA/HPRA) and other regions — a drug approved in one may not be approved, or may carry a different name, in another.