Pubdate: Sun, 28 Mar 2004 Source: Scotsman (UK) Copyright: The Scotsman Publications Ltd 2004 Contact: http://www.scotsman.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/406 Author: Lyndsay Moss, Health Correspondent, PA News Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/heroin.htm (Heroin) Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?131 (Heroin Maintenance) Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?132 (Heroin Overdose) Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?136 (Methadone) ADDICTS 'USE PRESCRIPTIONS TO AVOID RISK OF STREET SUPPLIES' Heroin addicts given prescribed drugs in efforts to help them kick the habit just see it as a way of avoiding the risks of using street supplies, research has revealed. Rather than using injectable diamorphine and the heroin substitute methadone as a way of reducing their habit, addicts said they saw it as the best method of getting a pure supply, researchers found. It also meant they were able to improve their relationships with family and avoid trouble with police. The findings, published in the journal Addiction, may disappoint doctors and campaigners who believe the prescriptions are a way of weaning addicts off more hazardous substances for good. Researchers studied 104 addicts prescribed diamorphine - heroin -- and methadone. Lead author Dr Louise Sell said: "One of the most striking findings of the study was that 74% of patients said that procuring a drug supply of known dose and purity, improving family relationships and avoiding trouble with the police were the three key reasons for seeking a prescription of injectable opiates." Dr Sell said only 20% of users saw prescribed injecting as a way of reducing drug use and quitting the habit. Those patients on methadone were six times more likely to report that they were gradually stopping injecting - 24% compared to 4% on diamorphine. The Home Office called for the expansion of diamorphine prescribing in 2002 in a bid to reduce crime, and it can only be prescribed with a licence from the department. In the study of patients attending a centre run by the Substance Misuse Directorate of Bolton, Salford and Trafford Mental Health Trust, 75% of people were on injectable methadone and 25% on diamorphine. Co-author Dr Deborah Zador said diamorphine, also used in the NHS to provide high levels of pain control, was not considered for all addicts because it was more expensive than methadone, less researched and harder to monitor. "However it may prove the best option for opiate addicts who have not responded well to other treatment. "For example they may have continued to inject heroin even while using the optimum prescribed levels of oral methadone, which is very risky, both physically and psychologically," Dr Zador said. - --- MAP posted-by: Derek