Ronith Elk

Fluoxetine is ineffective for treatment of cocaine dependence or concurrent opiate and cocaine dependence: Two placebo-controlled, double-blind trials

Cocaine dependence has proved difficult to treat, whether occurring alone or in combination with opiate dependence. No medication has been demonstrated to be uniquely effective. Fluoxetine was examined as a candidate in two randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trials, one with cocaine-dependent patients (study 1) and the other with patients both cocaine and opiate dependent (study 2). It was selected for known specific action, antidepressant effects, minimum side effects, and data showing reduced cocaine effect and self-administration. Clinic visit frequency requirement, a variable with implications for treatment and cost, was also examined in study 1. A total of 228 patients in study 1 and 21 patients in study 2 completed consent and intake procedures. Patients with serious medical or DSM-III-R diagnoses other than cocaine dependence (study 1) or opiate and cocaine dependence (study 2) were excluded. Study 1 patients were assigned to one of two visit frequency schedules (2 or 5 days/week) and one of three medication doses (0, 20, or 40 mg of fluoxetine/day). Study 2 patients received placebo or 20 mg of fluoxetine and 65 to 80 mg of methadone and attended the clinic 5 days/week. All patients participated in individual therapy sessions. Urine screens were conducted twice weekly. A fluoxetine dose response relationship emerged in study 1 for retention with groups from best to worst being placebo, 20 mg, and 40 mg. Dose effect order was the same for both visit conditions. Cocaine use persisted in all groups. The two visits/week condition was correlated with better retention than the five visits/week condition. A significant interaction emerged between intake urine and visit frequency; patients with benzoylecognine screens at intake used cocaine significantly less in the 5 days/week condition, while exhibiting no reduction in the 2 days/week condition. Patients cocaine positive at intake were better retained with infrequent visits. In study 2, a transient reduction in benzoylecognine-positive drug screens emerged for the fluoxetine group. These complementary studies demonstrate that fluoxetine is ineffective in reducing cocaine use or craving. Study 1 also points to setting conditions modulating treatment outcome.

Retention, HIV risk, and illicit drug use during treatment: methadone dose and visit frequency.

OBJECTIVES This study examined two major methadone treatment factors, visit frequency and methadone dose, posited to be important in reducing intravenous drug use and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) transmission. METHODS One hundred fifty opiate-dependent subjects randomly assigned to four groups received 50 or 80 mg of methadone and attended a clinic 2 or 5 days per week. RESULTS Survival analysis indicated higher dropout rates for groups having five vs two visits per week (Chi2[1]=7.76). Higher proportions of opiate-positive results on urine screens were associated with lower methadone doses (F[1,91]=4.74). CONCLUSIONS Receiving take-home doses early in treatment enhanced treatment retention. The 50-mg dose combined with five visits per week produced the worst outcome. Fewer visits enhanced retention at 50 mg, but opiate use rates were higher at this dose than they were for either 80-mg group. The HIV infection rate at entry was 9%. No subjects seroconverted during the study. Risk behaviors for acquired immunodeficiency syndrome declined over time regardless of group/dose assignment. These results have important implications for modification of regulatory and clinic policy changes.

Behavioral and Emotional Problems Among Children of Cocaine‐ and Opiate‐Dependent Parents

OBJECTIVE To test associations between parental drug abuse and childrens problems, children of cocaine- and opiate-dependent parents were compared with demographically matched referred and nonreferred children. METHOD Cocaine- and opiate-dependent parents in treatment completed the Child Behavior Checklist for 410 children (218 boys, 192 girls) from ages 2 through 18 years (mean = 7.9 years). Children of drug abusers (CDAs) were demographically matched to referred (RCs) and nonreferred children (NRCs). RESULTS RCs scored lower than CDAs and NRCs on most competence scales, and higher than CDAs and NRCs on all problem scales. CDAs scored lower than NRCs on most competence scales, and higher than NRCs on Withdrawn, Thought Problems, Delinquent Behavior, Aggressive Behavior, Internalizing, Externalizing, and Total Problems. Group status also predicted clinical range scores on most competence and all problem scales. CONCLUSIONS CDAs showed more internalizing and externalizing psychopathology relative to matched NRCs, but they showed significantly less psychopathology than shown by matched RCs. CDAs are an important group to target for preventive interventions.

Cessation of cocaine use during pregnancy: effects of contingency management interventions on maintaining abstinence and complying with prenatal care

Previous studies have reported cessation of cocaine use in pregnant women prior to treatment entry. This study examined the relative effectiveness of adjunctive contingency management interventions in maintaining abstinence and enhancing compliance with prenatal care in this unique population. Pregnant cocaine-dependent women who had used the drug during this pregnancy but had ceased use prior to study entry (N = 12) were randomly assigned to one of two treatment groups. All patients received a multifaceted treatment including behaviorally based drug counseling and weekly prenatal visits. Patients in the experimental condition also received contingent reinforcement for cocaine abstinence and attendance at prenatal visits. There was a high rate of retention and abstinence from cocaine in both groups. However, patients in the experimental group had a higher rate of attendance at prenatal visits, and none of the patients in this group experienced adverse perinatal outcome(s), compared to 80% of patients in the control group. This finding has important implications for cost-effective treatments and prevention of illness.

Medication take-home doses and contingency management

Two studies examined contingent take-home medication doses during treatment of opiate or cocaine dependence. In the first study, methadone maintenance patients were randomly assigned to one of two 8-week baseline take-home (TH) conditions differing in frequency of clinic visits per week. This was followed by a 12-week contingency management (CM) procedure in which frequent THs resulted from drug-free urines. Participants receiving more frequent THs during baseline had lower illicit drug use during the first 6 weeks of CM. In the second study, fluoxetine (0-, 20-, 40-mg) TH doses were similarly contingent in treatment of cocaine dependence. The 40-mg group used less cocaine during contingency than did other groups. The combination of fluoxetine and environmental contingencies may produce benefit where neither alone is sufficient.

Behavioral treatment of cocaine-dependent pregnant women and TB-exposed patients

Health-compromised drug-dependent patients require specialized treatment that addresses both drug use and health risks. This preliminary study examines the efficacy of a contingency management procedure (shaping) on decreasing cocaine use and increasing compliance with the prescribed treatment regimens in two health-compromised cocaine-dependent populations: (i) tuberculin (TB) exposed patients (n = 5) and (ii) pregnant women (n = 7). A multiple-baseline across-subjects design was used. There were no contingencies on cocaine use during baseline. During the contingent phase, patients received a monetary reinforcer for (a) successive decreases in the quantity of cocaine and (b) cocaine-free samples. They received a weekly reinforcer if all samples per week met criteria for (a) or (b). During the contingent phase, there was a significant decrease in cocaine metabolite levels and an increase in cocaine-free samples in both populations, with a more robust effect in the TB-exposed group. There was an increase in compliance with prenatal visits among the pregnant women during the contingent phase. Implications for health care are discussed.

Compliance with tubercolosis treatment in methadone-maintained patients: Behavioral interventions

UNLABELLED Tuberculosis has increased dramatically in the United States. Noncompliance with treatment is high. The purpose of this investigation was to achieve compliance with prophylactic TB treatment and simultaneously decrease drug use in a high-risk group of intravenous drug users. Two studies were conducted. Study 1: Subjects were 9 chronic opiate users who tested positive for tuberculosis and were placed on isoniazid (INH) and methadone. Methadone was dispensed contingent upon INH ingestion throughout. A within-subject, A-B design with contingency management interventions on drug use was implemented. RESULTS Compliance with INH was 100% in 8 patients. Cocaine use remained high. Study 2: Two patients, meeting same criteria as Study 1, participated in a within-subject A-B multiple baseline design. Methadone was dispensed contingent upon INH ingestion throughout. Successive decreases in cocaine use were reinforced in the contingent phase. RESULTS Compliance with INH was high. During contingency, both patients had over 40% cocaine-free urine samples compared with 0% at baseline. This investigation serves as a model for achieving compliance with TB treatment in opiate users.

A substance-abuse research-treatment clinic: effective procedures and systems.

Drug abuse treatment clinics vary widely. This article presents a model of a research-treatment clinic in which effective procedures and systems were instituted. These systems produce an environment in which both excellent research can be conducted and effective treatment provided, by a team of researchers and clinicians. Many of the procedures overcome frequently occurring problems at drug treatment clinics. The potential applicability of these procedures and systems to standard drug treatment clinics is discussed.

Behavioral Interventions: Effective and Adaptable for the Treatment of Pregnant Cocaine-Dependent Women

We examined the effectiveness of behavioral interventions in the treatment of cocaine-dependent pregnant women. The study was carried out in four stages: (1) the unique needs of substance-abusing women were examined to identify effective treatment factors, (2) behavioral interventions found to be effective in other cocaine-dependent populations were identified, (3) strategies from these two elements were combined in an ongoing treatment-study of cocaine-dependent pregnant women (the Pregnancy Project), and (4) outcome data in a group of 35 women who participated in the Pregnancy Project were examined. The rate of retention in treatment was high, as was compliance with prenatal care for those women who remained in treatment. A high rate of compliance with prenatal care was associated with good perinatal outcome. There was a relatively high rate of cocaine abstinence during treatment, at birth, and in the early period following birth of the baby. Many of the patients especially appreciated the individually based, self-empowering aspects of the behavioral counseling interventions. We concluded that behavioral interventions, within a woman-friendly treatment program, are an important treatment option to consider.

Social, ethical and practical aspects of perinatal substance use

Substance use in pregnancy has garnered increasing attention over the last decade as a particularly concerning facet of the larger national drug problem. This concern stems from the unique circumstance presented by pregnancy, in which the fetus may suffer harm as a result of maternal behavior. Furthermore, organizing a response to this problem is complicated by the ethically and legally challenging nature of the maternal-fetal relationship. The medical implications of perinatal substance use are profound. A discussion of these associated medical and obstetrical complications lies outside the focus of this paper, and the reader is referred to other reviews (Andres & Jones, 1994; Robins & Mills, 1993). This article is intended to assist obstetricians and others in their approach to the substance using pregnant patient. We first review the scope of this problem in social and financial terms and then review the important ethical and legal issues involved in current policymaking. Lastly, we suggest a clinical intervention focusing on education and improvement in identification and management of this subset of patients.