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Naltrexone shots boost alcoholics' quality of life

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Reuters Health

Thursday, January 1, 2009

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Monthly injections of an extended-release version of the alcohol dependence drug naltrexone improve quality of life for alcohol-dependent patients, a study shows.

A 6-month treatment course of the drug "improved general health, physical and social functioning, and overall mental health," lead investigator Dr. Helen M. Pettinati told Reuters Health. "It was clear that individuals who had reduced their drinking with extended-release naltrexone were those that showed improvements in quality of life."

Compared to placebo, naltrexone has been shown to reduce both drinking and heavy drinking in alcohol-dependent patients. To determine whether naltrexone also has a positive effect on quality of life, Pettinati, of the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, Philadelphia and colleagues randomly assigned 624 patients to a monthly injection of extended-release naltrexone (380 or 190 milligrams) or placebo, plus standard psychosocial therapy that included feedback on the consequences of addiction.

The alcohol-dependent patients showed impairments in quality of life before treatment, compared with population norms, especially in mental-health and social functioning, Pettinati and colleagues observed.

They also observed that the higher dose naltrexone group showed "meaningful and significant" improvements compared to the placebo group in mental health, social functioning, general health, and physical functioning.

These improvements in quality of life were significantly correlated with reduction in drinking.

"Alcohol dependence is a chronic and disabling disorder," Pettinati noted. "Heavy drinking is associated with impairments in physical and mental health, social and marital relationships --- key areas that are related to a person's quality of life."

Monthly injections of extended-release naltrexone can help, she concluded.

"These findings reinforce the notion that treatment of alcoholism, whether it's by medication or psychotherapy, does work," said Dr. Allen Zweben of Columbia University, New York. "Medication thus becomes another option available to people."

SOURCE: Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research, January 2009.


Reuters Health

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