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Abstinent Opiate Abusers Exhibit Conditioned Craving, Conditioned Withdrawal and Reductions in both through Extinction
Author(s) -
CHILDRESS ANNA ROSE,
McLELLAN A. THOMAS,
O'BRIEN CHARLES P.
Publication year - 1986
Publication title -
british journal of addiction
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.424
H-Index - 193
eISSN - 1360-0443
pISSN - 0952-0481
DOI - 10.1111/j.1360-0443.1986.tb00385.x
Subject(s) - craving , opiate , extinction (optical mineralogy) , psychology , psychiatry , abstinence , clinical psychology , anesthesia , medicine , addiction , paleontology , receptor , biology
Summary Abstinent opiate abusers who have just completed a 30‐day treatment program in a Therapeutic Community setting experience intense drug craving and may even experience subjective withdrawal signs/symptoms when exposed to drug‐related stimuli. The described extinction procedures were effective in virtually eliminating conditioned craving and conditioned withdrawal signs/symptoms to drug‐related stimuli within 20 hour‐long treatment sessions (a 3‐week inpatient stay). These findings are discussed in terms of the need to address conditioned opiate‐related responses in the treatment of abstinent opiate abusers, as these responses may make the patient more vulnerable to relapse.