1. What is Naltrexone Therapy and why is it important?

Naltrexone is a pure narcotic antagonist, that blocks the effects of heroin and methadone (Physeptone) and all other opiates, such as morphine, Palfium, codeine, dihydrocodeine (DF118) and Subutex (buprenorphine). That is, it attaches to the endorphin or opiate receptors in the brain and completely blocks them. This means that if someone tries to use any kind of opiate while they are on Naltrexone, they feel no effect because all of the receptors are completely blocked. While Naltrexone is in the body, it is virtually impossible to relapse.

We believe that the ultimate goal of any detoxification program is to have patients on Naltrexone. Naltrexone has been available as an oral tablet since the late 1970s. However, it only has duration of action of around 24 to 48 hours and in practice, it has been found that most patients either forget or purposefully choose not to take their medicine. Then in a short period of time they go back to using Heroin. Higher success rates have been achieved when patients are forced to take their medicine, either by concerned family members, or by a court system such as probation or parole. For this reason, we strongly recommend the Naltrexone implant. We believe that Naltrexone therapy should be given for 12 months. This gives the patient a chance to have their brain physically recover from the damage from the narcotics. It also gives the patient an excellent chance to begin on the road to recovery.

2. What is the Naltrexone implant?

This is a special formulation of Naltrexone, which is designed to release slowly about 12 month period. The naltrexone implants are inserted in the lower abdominal wall using a sterile procedure under local anaesthetic.So it is effective and does not allow the patient to forget or skip their medicine. There are some potential side effects with the Naltrexone Implant including infection, irritation or inflammation. The Naltrexone implant is still in the registration process in China, and has not got the FDA approval. It should be regarded as experimental. However the medications it contains are fully approved by the FDA.

4. How long should I be on Naltrexone therapy?

We believe strongly that patients should be on Naltrexone therapy for at least twelve months. This prevents them from relapsing back to narcotic use and gives the patients a chance to start making changes in their lives and building up a support program. We highly recommend at least one 12-month Naltrexone implants and ask your doctor’s advice to re-implant.

5. What is the risk of overdosing following treatment?

Studies show that there have been patients who have died following periods of abstinence from narcotics. This appears to be caused by lack of tolerance following a period of abstinence. Naltrexone is extremely good at making people abstinent but when the Naltrexone wears off, patients have a very low tolerance. It is extremely easy for them to use too much Heroin or other opiates and have an overdose which can be fatal. Patients need to understand this clearly and be extremely careful if they do relapse back to narcotic use. The fatal overdoses usually not happened on the first time of using and so patients need to be very careful for at least the first month. It is also may be possible to overdose if the patients try to override their Naltrexone therapy.