Buprenorphine as a Treatment for Individuals Dependent on Analgesic Opioids

Many individuals who take opioids for chronic pain abuse the opioid medication. Buprenorphine is an opioid partial agonist that may be effective in treating individuals who abuse opiate pain medication. The purpose of this study is to compare two buprenorphine dosing regimens in order to determine which regimen is more effective in reducing opiate pain medication use and facilitating successful opioid detoxification.

This study will last 27 weeks. Participants will receive a maintenance dose of 8 mg of buprenorphine for 6 weeks, followed by a dose reduction in 2 mg increments over the course of the following 20 weeks. All participants will attend weekly clinical management sessions for the duration of the study.