 | | | | Related Healthscout Videos | |
|
FRIDAY, July 13 (HealthDay News) -- U.S. researchers are launching the first large-scale national study to evaluate a treatment for addiction to prescription opioid painkillers, such as OxyContin and Vicodin.
The study, which is funded by the U.S. National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), will assess the effectiveness of buprenorphine/naloxone tablets (brand name Suboxone), along with different types of drug counseling, in 648 patients. The study will be conducted at New York University Medical Center, New York City, in partnership with Bellevue Hospital Center, as well as at 10 other sites across the country.
Text Continues Below
Several of the study sites are located in rural areas with especially high rates of prescription painkiller abuse.
The patients will receive Suboxone for one month at the start of the study. The dose will then be tapered off as part of a detoxification process. Patients who go two months without abusing painkillers will have completed the study.
Patients who relapse may be eligible to go back on Suboxone for three more months, with their dose tapered off in the fourth month. They would then be followed for two months.
Half of the patients in the study will also be enrolled in an intensive individualized drug counseling program when they get their Suboxone prescriptions. The other half of the patients will receive a brief drug counseling session from their doctors.
"Opioid analgesics were designed to help people in pain, and we want to be sure that those who require them for legitimate reasons can continue to effectively manage their pain," NIDA director Dr. Nora D. Volkow said in a prepared statement. "However, we must also recognize the risk of addiction to pain medications and develop treatments for those who become addicted to them. This trial is an important first step in reaching that goal."
Page: 1 | 2 | Next >>
-- Robert Preidt
|
.gif)
