“Psychosocial interventions, used together with effective medications, are a key part of recommended treatment for opioid addiction. But while research generally supports the effectiveness of psychosocial treatments, there are major gaps in the evidence on their use in conjunction with medications, according to a review and update in the January/February Journal of Addiction Medicine, the official journal of the American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM).
“Given the current state of the opioid overdose epidemic, it is critical that patients seeking help for opioid addiction have access to comprehensive treatment that includes highly effective medications whose effects may be enhanced with the provision of psychosocial interventions,” according to the report by Karen Dugosh, PhD, of Treatment Research Institute, Philadelphia, and colleagues.
Of the 27 newer studies, 14 evaluated psychosocial treatments in conjunction with methadone maintenance therapy. Nine of these studies showed significant benefits of psychosocial interventions in patients being treated with methadone, including reduced drug use and increased treatment attendance. For buprenorphine, the results were “less robust”—only three of eight studies found positive effects of psychosocial interventions.
The study results are available at: http://medicalxpress.com/news/2016-01-psychosocial-treatments-conjunction-medication-opioid.html
Source: MedicalExpress.com – January 26, 2016
