Buprenorphine/Naloxone (Bup/Nx) versus Clonidine for Outpatient Opiate Detoxification

For decades clinicians, have been frustrated by the inability to successfully detoxify opiate addicted patients because opiate-based detoxification, one of the most effective means to achieving that goal, has been unavailable outside the very restrictive confines of narcotic treatment programs. Bup/Nx shows promise as an effective aid for opiate detoxification; however, little data have been generated for the shorter-term use of Bup/Nx for this indication. Because the diversity of clinics in the CTN provides an unparalleled opportunity to conduct such a clinical endeavor, the utility of buprenorphine/naloxone in short term (13 day) detoxification versus clonidine in an outpatient setting was tested in the CTN.