Prescrire international
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Prescrire international · Apr 2006
Comparative StudyBuprenorphine replacement therapy: a confirmed benefit.
(1) The aim of replacement therapy for heroin addiction is to suppress craving for other opiates and to prevent opiate withdrawal symptoms. (2) In France, methadone was the first drug to be licensed for this use, in 1995, with very strict prescribing and dispensing conditions. Buprenorphine was approved in 1996, and was subject to less restrictive conditions. (3) In 2003 in France, an estimated 80 000 people were receiving replacement therapy with buprenorphine and 14 000 with methadone. (4) A meta-analysis of 13 comparative trials involving a total of 2544 patients showed that buprenorphine 6 to 12 mg initially reduced both opiate and benzodiazepine use, whereas doses of 2 to 4 mg had no marked impact on heroin use. This meta-analysis concluded that buprenorphine and methadone had similar efficacy in clinical trials in which the dose was adjusted to outcome. ⋯ Injection carries a risk of infections; other potential long-term effects are poorly understood. Compared with methadone users, and regardless of the substances involved, buprenorphine users appear more likely to self-inject. (9) The consequences of sniffing crushed buprenorphine tablets have not been studied. (10) Deaths have been reported following buprenorphine overdose, but they appear to be less frequent than with methadone (0.2 and 0.7 deaths per 1000 users, respectively in 1998). (11) Approaches designed to help patients stop self-injecting have not been tested in comparative trials. Prescriptions of methadone syrup or an injection opiate may be worth trying when all other measures fail.