THE EFFECTIVENESS OF NALTREXONE IN PREVENTING RELAPSE IN OPIOID-DEPENDENT PATIENTS

Aim: To assess efficacy of Naltrexone in preventing the relapse among opioid-dependent pts. Place of study: In the Psychiatry department of Sheikh Zayed Medical College & Hospital, Rahim Yar Khan for one-year duration from April 2019 to April 2020. Study design: Interventional design: Prospective, open-label, clinical trial. Sampling technique: no probability: deliberate sampling. Material and methods: Forty-five male drug addicts; 25 from Bahawalpur and 20 from Rahim Yar Khan were included in the study. After detoxification, each patient was given 50 mg of Naltrexone daily under supervision of a care giver. Each patient was followed for one-year. Results: On completion of the trial, 13 patients (28.9%) had relapsed while 71.1% were still abstinent as judged by Thin Layer Chromatography of urine. LFTs remained normal in all cases. Headache was the most frequent (29.7%) side effect followed by anxiety (27.4%) and loss of energy (25.3%). Conclusion: A high rate of abstinence (71.1%) coupled with a low incidence of side effects makes Naltrexone an acceptable mode of treatment for opioid dependence Keywords: naltrexone, opiod