Pubdate: Fri, 27 May 2016
Source: San Diego Union Tribune (CA)
Copyright: 2016 Associated Press
Contact:  http://www.utsandiego.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/386
Note: Seldom prints LTEs from outside it's circulation area.

FDA APPROVES FIRST IMPLANT TO CONTROL ADDICTION

WASHINGTON (AP) - Federal health officials on Thursday approved an 
innovative new option for Americans struggling with addiction to 
heroin and painkillers: a drug-oozing implant that curbs craving and 
withdrawal symptoms for six months at a time.

The first-of-its-kind device, Probuphine, arrives as communities 
across the U.S. grapple with a wave of addiction tied to opioids, 
highly-addictive drugs that include legal pain medications like 
OxyContin and illegal narcotics like heroin.

The implant from Braeburn Pharmaceuticals is essentially a new 
delivery system for an established drug, buprenorphine, which has 
long been used to treat opioid addiction. But its implantable format 
could help patients avoid relapses that can occur if they miss a 
medication dose.

More than 2.5 million Americans are addicted to opioids, according to 
federal estimates. But less than half are receiving medication-based 
treatment to help control the problem.

The matchstick-size implant slowly releases a low dose of 
buprenorphine over six months. Previously the drug was only available 
as a pill or film that dissolves under the tongue. It is considered a 
safer, more palatable alternative to methadone, the decades-old 
standard for controlling opioid addiction.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom