Injectable methadone prescribing in the United Kingdom - current practice and future policy guidelines
by
Sarfraz A, Alcorn RJ
Stone House Hospital,
Dartford, Kent, UK.
Subst Use Misuse 1999 Oct; 34(12):1709-21

ABSTRACT

Unlike other countries, there is a tradition in the UK to prescribe injectable methadone to opiate addicts as treatment for their addition. Along with injectable heroin prescribing, this approach has been labeled as the "British System." It has caused controversy at home and abroad, and provided a hot topic for debate among its advocates and critics since 1926. Over the years, intravenous opiate misuse has increased globally due to diverse social, psychological, and political reasons. The UK has also reflected similar, if not adverse, trends nationally. Following an increase in the number of intravenous opiate misusers, a growing minority of them is being prescribed injectable methadone as treatment. In the absence of comprehensive guidelines or policy from the Home Office and the Department of Health, this practice has serious practical, ethical, and legal implications for the health professionals involved. We propose an injectable methadone prescribing policy, based on our clinical practice, to stimulate relevant research/debate and for possible use in the national or similar international services.

Pain
LAAM
Opioids
Fentanyl
Tramadol
Tolerance
Nociceptin
Methadone
Remifentanil
Endomorphins
LAAM v methadone
Opioids and depression
Methadone and cocaine
Methadone maintenance
Rapid opioid detoxification
Methadone and cancer pain
Methadone: "killer drug" etc
Buprenorphine v methadone
Methadone, LAAM and the rush

Refs
and further reading

HOME
HedWeb
Nootropics
cocaine.wiki
Future Opioids
BLTC Research
MDMA/Ecstasy
Superhapiness?
Utopian Surgery?
The Abolitionist Project
The Hedonistic Imperative
The Reproductive Revolution
Critique of Huxley's Brave New World

The Good Drug Guide
The Responsible Parent's Guide
To Healthy Mood Boosters For All The Family