Suboxone Detox for Oxycodone
Suboxone is an opioid medication used to treat addictions to opiates. It was first employed to treat people addicted to heroin and morphine. Because these drugs are similar to opiate analgesics like oxycodone and hydrocodone, it has been effective in treating them as well. The active ingredient in Suboxone, buprenorphine, produces opiate effects similar to drugs like oxycodone, but the effects of buprenorphine are milder. These effects help to block drug cravings, suppress symptoms of opiate withdrawal and make it easier for patients to stay in treatment.
Suboxone can be used for detox and/or maintenance in a drug treatment program. Free of the distracting physical symptoms of drug detox, patients can focus on other issues that contribute to their addiction through counseling. Concurrent counseling is an important part of any Suboxone detox program.
Opiate detoxification assisted by buprenorphine has been proven effective by a clinical trial sponsored by the National Institute on Drug Abuse. The use of buprenorphine is beginning to eclipse the use of methadone, once the drug of choice for medical management of opiate addiction. Methadone has been shown to be as addictive as other opiates and is dangerous in an overdose situation. Suboxone is a safer drug than Methadone, and Suboxone treatment is sometimes used to treat Methadone addiction.
Once a patient has run his or her course through treatment, the dosage of suboxone can be gradually decreased. Suboxone addiction is rarely an issue because the euphoric effects of the drug are not as intense as other opiates. While some withdrawal symptoms may occur, Suboxone withdrawal is much less severe than with other opiates.
Source: http://www.drugabuse.gov/drugpages/buprenorphine.html
Click here to read the next part in the series, “Suboxone Detox for Hydrocodone.” Click here to return to the first part in the series, “Introduction to Oxycodone Abuse, Addiction and Treatment.”
Pat Moore Foundation’s drug & alcohol detox and alcohol & drug addiction treatment programs are licensed and certified by The State of California. We provide non-medical and medically managed detoxification (using Suboxone, Subutex, and Buprenorphine when appropriate) and primary residential treatment. Our individual homes are on a unique co-ed campus where we offer gender specific treatment. We are located in Costa Mesa, in Orange County, Southern California, close to Newport Beach and Huntington Beach, and only an hour’s drive from Los Angeles and San Diego. To speak with a counselor, please call us 24-hours at (888) 426-6086 or if you’d like us to contact you, send a confidential message online by filling out our online form.
Note: All medical services are administered by medical professionals, which are facilitated and operated solely under the jurisdiction of a separate medical corporation.