Treatment Options

Mentioned below is Ibogaine, a new treatment option for heroin and cocaine addiction. Treatment methods are discussed in detail in another course NRP-1612, Substance Abuse: Treating Diverse Populations. However, we mention this option here and now because ibogaine is a very new treatment option and is specific for heroin and cocaine addictions.

Ibogaine (NIDA, 1998)

On August 25, 1993, the Drug Abuse Advisory Committee of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) voted to permit an individual academic investigator to conduct a limited human investigation of ibogaine. Ibogaine is believed by some to interrupt addiction of some heroin-dependent and cocaine-dependent persons. Ibogaine comes from the root of the iboga plant found primarily in certain West African nations and used in certain African rituals. Ibogaine also is reported to be a hallucinogenic drug. This drug is currently under study and holds promise as an adjunct for treatment. Preliminary reports are due within the next year or two. We will keep this text updated as to the results of the FDA studies.

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