Treatment of chronic pain syndromes with iontophoresis of vinca alkaloids to the skin of patients.

Repeated iontophoretic administration of the microtubule inhibitors vinblastine or vincristine to the segmentally related dermatomes of patients suffering from postherpetic, trigeminal and other neuralgias permanently alleviates chronic, autochthonous pain. The beneficial effect of this therapy is probably due to transganglionic degenerative atrophy of primary central sensory terminals in the Rolando substance by blockade of retrograde axoplasmic transport in sensory nerves.