Levo-Alpha Acetyl Methadol (LAAM). Its advantages and drawbacks

Novel pharmacological approaches to drug abuse treatment

The field of pharmacologic addiction treatment is expanding rapidly. While there are currently several FDA-approved medications for nicotine, alcohol, and opiate dependence, research into novel pharmacological approaches for these and additional substances is legion. Each drug of abuse, while sharing a common final neural pathway of increasing dopaminergic tone, has unique and individual characteristics that are important in developing improved and varied treatments. In this chapter, we discuss such research and present the neurobiological underpinnings of these explorations. In general, addiction treatment is focused on four areas: (1) reducing withdrawal discomfort, (2) diminishing cravings, (3) blocking rewarding effects of the drug, and (4) treating comorbidities, such as depression or ADHD. We present current ideas in pharmacologic research for nicotine, alcohol, cannabis, stimulants, and opiates.

Transfer of L-alpha-acetylmethadol (LAAM) and L-alpha-acetyl-N-normethadol (norLAAM) by the perfused human placental lobule

The agonists buprenorphine and l-alpha-acetylmethadol (LAAM) were introduced as alternatives to methadone for treatment of the adult opiate addict. The direct and indirect effects of these drugs on normal fetal growth and development are currently under investigation in our laboratory. The goal of this report is to provide part of the data necessary to assess the safety of LAAM in treatment of the pregnant opiate addict. To achieve this goal, the technique of dual perfusion of placental lobule was utilized to determine the kinetics for transplacental transfer of LAAM and its effects on the viability and functional parameters of the tissue. LAAM is rapidly metabolized to the pharmacologically active norLAAM that was also included in this investigation. The two opiates were transfused at their plasma levels in patients under treatment, a concentration of 35 ng/ml. The drugs exhibited similar pharmacokinetic profiles, characterized by an initial phase of distribution into placental tissue followed by their low transfer to the fetal circuit. During the 4-h experimental period, the transfused tissue retained significant amounts of LAAM and norLAAM, and neither drug was metabolized. LAAM did not affect placental tissue viability and functional parameters. However, norLAAM caused a significant decrease in the release of human chorionic gonadotropin. At this time, it is unclear whether a similar effect for norLAAM may occur in vivo and, if so, what the consequences would be on its role in implantation and normal fetal growth and development.

Limits to buprenorphine dosing: a comparison between quintuple and sextuple the maintenance dose every 5 days

The relative efficacy of quintuple and sextuple buprenorphine dosing in abating withdrawal symptoms for 120 h was compared in opioid-dependent outpatients. Fourteen subjects received buprenorphine in a double-blind, placebo-controlled, cross-over design. Daily sublingual maintenance doses were 4 mg/70 kg (n=4) and 8 mg/70 kg (n=10). After a stabilization period of daily maintenance administration, subjects received quintuple (5x daily maintenance dose) and sextuple (6x daily maintenance dose) doses every 120 h. Measures of opioid agonist and withdrawal effects were assessed daily. Subjective ratings of withdrawal were significantly greater than baseline ratings beyond 96-h post dosing under both regimens. There was no evidence, however, that those subjective ratings of withdrawal differed between the two regimens. Thus, these data suggest that sextuple buprenorphine dosing, administered every 5 days, does not abate opioid-withdrawal beyond 96 hours.

Improving the quality of substance dependency treatment with pharmacotherapy

This article provides an overview of current pharmacological treatments for alcohol, opioid, cocaine, and nicotine use disorders. Guidelines for a "patient-treatment" matching framework to physicians working with various "substance-abusing" patients are presented, as well as recommendations regarding when to initiate and discontinue pharmacotherapy. Standard and newer pharmacological treatments for substance dependence are reviewed, as well as therapies that may be especially useful when treating the patient with comorbid substance dependency and psychiatric disorders. To maximize the therapeutic benefits of substance dependency treatment, patients should be individually assessed and provided adjunctive medications as clinically indicated. Specific areas for future laboratory and/or clinical research are recommended.

Pharmacologic treatments for drug and alcohol dependence

Pharmacotherapy remains a relatively underused strategy for the treatment of patients with psychoactive substance-use disorders. This is partly because of a widely held view among the public and the substance-abuse treatment community that substance-use disorders are non-medical and should be treated through nonpharmacologic means. Furthermore, the pharmaceutical industry has been slow in developing medications for the treatment of patients with these disorders because of skepticism over the potential profitability of such medications. These factors have limited research activity in this area, with much of the impetus for study of these medications coming from the National Institute on Drug Abuse and the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, where the substantial public health implications of medications development for substance-use disorders have been recognized. Despite limitations, considerable advances in medication development for patients with substance-use disorders have occurred in recent years, and more can be expected in the near future. This is most evident in the treatment of patients with nicotine and opioid dependence, for whom several pharmacologic options exist. Recently renewed interest in the pharmacologic treatment of patients with alcohol dependence is likely to advance that therapeutic area substantially with time. Ongoing efforts should focus on identifying new compounds, systematically assessing them for activity in specific substance-use disorders, and educating the public and the treatment community about the substantial benefits that can accrue from medication development for patients with substance-use disorders.