[Effect of gabapentin on opioid withdrawal symptoms in opium dependent patients]

ABSTRACT

This randomized double-blind, placebo controlled study was performed to evaluate the effectiveness of gabapentin in the treatment of opiate withdrawal symptoms. This was a 3-week double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled trial and performed in specialized addiction behavior unit, an outpatient unit for the treatment of patients with addiction in Isfahan. The study included forty patients, 37 males and 3 females, between 21-61 years of age who met DSM-IV criteria for opium dependence. The subjects were randomly assigned into 2 groups. The experimental group received MAD [methadone-assisted detoxification] and gabapentin 900 mg/day. Severity of different withdrawal symptoms was measured by using subjective opiate withdrawal scale [SWOS] in six steps. Despite superiority of gabapentin to placebo in controlling some of withdrawal symptoms no significant difference was noticed between the two groups. Addition of 900 mg/day of gabapentin to MAD treatment regimen is not significantly superior to placebo in controlling opium withdrawal symptoms