%0 Journal Article
%T High-dose buprenorphine: three-year follow-up of 285 patients
%A Dif C
%A Winter G
%J Revue M¨¦dicale de l'Assurance Maladie
%D 2005
%I 
%X Aims: To analyze the evolution in prescriptions for high-dose buprenorphine (BHD) in patients affiliated with the national health fund¡¯s local agency (CPAM) in Nancy over a three year period. Method: This study retraced the histories of patients who were reimbursed for at least one prescription of BHD during the months of September and October from 1998 to 2001. We studied the number of prescribing physicians, the number of pharmacies delivering the drugs, the daily BHD dosage prescribed and prescriptions associating psychotropic drugs. Results: We enrolled 285 patients with an average age of 27.5 years and a male/female sex ratio of 3.5. In 2001, 11.7 % of the patients consulted at least three different physicians and 12.3 % purchased their medications from at least three different chemists. In 2001, the average dose used was 7.5 mg; 16 patients received doses in excess of 16 mg. Between 1998 and 2001, the daily dose remained unchanged in 14.0 % of the patients; it increased in 45.6 % and decreased in 40.4 %. The dose remained stable or decreased in 63.3 % of the patients who consulted at least three different physicians. The number of patients who also received reimbursement for prescriptions of anxiolytic and hypnotic drugs, in particular benzodiazepines, was on the increase. These patients also received a higher daily dose of BHD. Conclusion: These findings suggest a number of tendencies: an evolution in the average dose, either towards higher doses, or, in the majority of patients, toward lower doses and an increase in the number of patients also taking benzodiazepines.
%K high-dose buprenorphine
%K replacement therapy
%K benzodiazepines.
%U http://www.ameli.fr/fileadmin/user_upload/documents/Buprenorphine_haut_dosage.pdf