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Naltrexone and Brief Counseling to Reduce Heavy Drinking
Author(s) -
Bohn Michael J.,
Kranzler Henry R.,
Beazoglou Despina,
Staehler Beth A.
Publication year - 1994
Publication title -
the american journal on addictions
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.997
H-Index - 76
eISSN - 1521-0391
pISSN - 1055-0496
DOI - 10.1111/j.1521-0391.1994.tb00375.x
Subject(s) - naltrexone , medicine , heavy drinking , alcohol consumption , placebo , alcohol , alcohol dependence , population , randomized controlled trial , environmental health , poison control , injury prevention , alternative medicine , opioid , biochemistry , chemistry , receptor , pathology
Naltrexone (NTX) has been shown to be safe and effective in reducing relapses among alcoholics. Among nondependent heavy drinkers, who are more numerous in the general population than are alcohol‐dependent drinkers, brief counseling has been shown to reduce alcohol consumption. The authors conducted a 6‐week randomized study of the effects of adding 25‐mg or 50‐mg daily doses of NTX to brief counseling in 14 nondependent heavy drinkers. NTX was well‐tolerated. Desire for alcohol, drinking frequency, frequency of heavy drinking, total alcohol consumption, and serum gamma‐glutamyl transpeptidase all decreased significantly during treatment. A placebo‐controlled trial is warranted to evaluate further the efficacy of NTX in this group of problem drinkers.