Treating Drug Addiction With Drugs

The old saying goes that you have to fight fire with fire. Using that logic, health officials have increased the availability of an opioid to combat the rising tide of opiate addiction. On any given day, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 650,000 opioid prescriptions are dispensed. Of these, 3,900 people begin using the drugs for nonmedical reasons, and 78 people die from an opioid-related overdose. That's every day. In western Pennsylvania, for instance, deaths caused by opioids, including heroin and prescription drugs, increased by more than a third last year, according to a new report from the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA). In an effort to address the opioid epidemic, the White House has requested $1.1 billion to help people get treatment near where they live. This includes expanding the number of physicians who can prescribe an opioid that's used to treat opioid addiction when administered in large doses. Expanding access to buprenorphine Major studies have found people who use drug-assisted therapy, such as buprenorphine or methadone, have a much higher success rate of finally ridding themselves of their addiction. Coupled with group behavioral therapy, that rate increases. "The studies that have come out have shown this is most effective for opioid addiction," Dr. Doug Nemecek, chief medical officer of Cigna Behavioral Health, told Healthline. Research has shown that without medical intervention, addicts have a 90 percent ...
Source: Healthy Living - The Huffington Post - Category: Consumer Health News Source Type: news