Lyrica vs Neurontin
Both are anticonvulsants. Here is how Lyrica and Neurontin compare on class, mechanism, dosing, approval and supply.
At a glance
Key differences
- Same class. Both Lyrica and Neurontin are anticonvulsants, so they work through the same broad mechanism. Differences between them tend to be about dosing, route, how selective they are, and side effects rather than what they target.
- How they are taken. Both are given by the oral route.
- Time on the market. Lyrica was first approved by the FDA in 2004, Neurontin in 1993. That gives Neurontin roughly 11 more years of real-world use and long-term safety data.
What each one treats
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 )
NEURONTIN ® is indicated for: • Management of postherpetic neuralgia in adults • Adjunctive therapy in the treatment of partial onset seizures, with and without secondary generalization, in adults and pediatric patients 3 years and older with epilepsy NEURONTIN is indicated for: • Postherpetic neuralgia in adults ( 1 ) • Adjunctive therapy in the treatment of partial onset seizures, with and without secondary generalization, in adults and pediatric patients 3 years and older with epilepsy ( 1 )
How each one works
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 …
12.1 Mechanism of Action The precise mechanisms by which gabapentin produces its analgesic and antiepileptic actions are unknown. Gabapentin is structurally related to the neurotransmitter gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) but has no effect on GABA binding, uptake, or degradation. In vitro studies have shown that gabapentin binds with high-affinity to the α2δ subunit of voltage-activated calcium channels; however, the relationship of this binding to the therapeutic effects of gabapentin is unknown.
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How this page is built
The facts on this page are pulled directly from official U.S. FDA datasets — they are not written from memory. Each field below names the dataset it came from, so you can check it yourself.
- FDA Drug Label (openFDA) ↗ Indications, mechanism of action and pharmacologic class
- Drugs@FDA ↗ First FDA approval date and the company holding the application
- FDA Drug Shortage Database ↗ Current US supply / shortage status
Plain-English summaries and drug-class explainers are written and reviewed by Sreepriya Prasannan (MSc Digital Transformation of Life Sciences (Innopharma Education / Griffith College); MSc & BSc Botany). Data is retrieved automatically from the sources above and cross-checked with AI-assisted verification (Anthropic's Claude) — brand and generic names are matched against the exact FDA product record so that a combination product or a different formulation cannot be mistaken for the drug on this page. An editor reviews the result before publication. We describe this in full in our editorial standards and corrections policy. The FDA data on this page was last retrieved on 11 Oct 2026. How every register is built: methodology · fixes we have made: corrections log.