Buprenorphine
Buprenorphine more commonly known as Suboxone is a unique medication used to treat opioid use disorder.
It comes in multiple forms: tablets, sublingual film, and long-acting injection giving it a lot of versatility when helping patients stop opioid use and maintain remission.
Buprenorphine has several advantages over treatments like Methadone and Naltrexone for opioid use disorder:
- Compared to methadone it has fewer side effects and less risk of overdose when combined with other abused substances.
- Easier to access than methadone due to less strict federal regulations.
- Unfortunately, relapse is common with opioid abuse. While naltrexone can be a good tool, buprenorphine offers more protection from overdose during relapse.
Common side effects include:
- Constipation
- Sedation
- Tooth decay (sublingual)
Rare side effects:
- Extremity swelling
- Urinary retention
- Elevated or decreased blood pressure
- Heart arrhythmia
- Increase liver enzymes
- Dizziness