Gabapentin, a medicinal drug sold under the brandnames Gralise, Gabarone, Fanatrex, Neurontin (and many others) was discovered in the 1970s, and was first used as a muscle relaxant and painkiller.

In the US alone, it currently has more than 40 million prescriptions per year.

It's used to treat Restless leg syndromeplugin-autotooltip__plain plugin-autotooltip_bigRestless leg syndrome

Restless leg syndrome, also known as Willis-Ekbom disease, is a common condition of the nervous system that causes an overwhelming and irresistible urge to move the legs. Estimates are that around 10% of people suffer from RLS at some stage in their lives. It often occurs during sleeping hours and can cause severe insomnia. In the majority of cases there's no obvious cause (i.e. it's termed, Parkinson's diseaseplugin-autotooltip__plain plugin-autotooltip_bigParkinson's disease

Also known as Parkinson disease, Parkinson's, idiopathic Parkinsonism, primary Parkinsonism, PD, or paralysis agitans - is a degenerative disorder of the central nervous system resulting from the death of dopamine-containing cells in the and Epilepsyplugin-autotooltip__plain plugin-autotooltip_bigEpilepsy

"Epilepsy is a chronic noncommunicable disease of the brain that affects around 50 million people worldwide. It is characterized by recurrent seizures, which are brief episodes of involuntary movement that may involve a part of the body (partial) or the entire body (generalized) and are sometimes accompanied by loss of consciousness and control of bowel or bladder function. Seizure episodes are a result of excessive electrical discharges in a group of brain cells. Different parts of … (and many other conditions).

Its 'mechanism of action' - both as an anti-convulsant and as an analgesic - are unknown.

Further info Anaesthesia Volume 57, Issue 5