Therapy
The development of pharmacotherapies for drug dependency treatment are currently in progress. New immunotherapies that prevent drugs like cocaine, methamphetamine, phencyclidine, nicotine, and opioids from reaching the brain are in the early stages of testing as is ibogaine, an alkaloid found in the Tabernanthe iboga plant of West Central Africa. Medications such as Buprenorphine, which block the drugs active site in the brain are another new option for the treatment of opioid addiction. Depot forms of medications, which require only weekly or monthly dosing, are also under investigation.
Traditionally, new pharmacotherapies are quickly adopted in primary care settings, however, drugs for substance abuse treatment have faced many barriers . Naltrexone, a drug marketed under the name "ReVia," is a medication approved for the treatment of alcohol dependence. Unfortunately, this drug has reached very few patients. This may be due to a number of factors, including resistance by addiction treatment providers and lack of resources.
