Posted by Elizabeth on December 17, 2001, at 23:29:21
In reply to Re: sublingual buprenorphine tabs (Subutex, Temgesic), posted by Annie Z. on December 17, 2001, at 11:44:25
> What method of administration did they use at McLean where the study or studies produced some extraordinary results for some people?
They used the formulation currently available in the U.S., the injectable solution (Buprenex). Some of the subjects used it intranasally, as I do, and others used it sublingually.
> How effective is the sublingual pill, which is currently available in Europe? Do you, Elizabeth, or anyone from Europe know?
I don't know; I'm interested in trying it, though.
> In another one of your posts, Elizabeth, you said taking bupe intranasally is difficult because of the strange procedure of taking the medication out of the vial with a syringe, and then breathing it up your nose.
It's not just that: you have to lie down for a couple minutes and let it drip to the back of your nose (with your head tilted back). I believe that this part could be avoided if it were available in a metered-dose nasal inhaler (like Stadol NS).
> I would think for privacy reasons, you would probably need to find a restroom four times per day to administer this medication – very inconvenient.
The midday dose is the only one that's problematic. (I take it three times a day, not four, BTW.)
> Perhaps bupe could be administered as a shot?
Sure, the solution available here in the US is intended for IM or IV injection. But we're talking three times a day, at least -- I'm not sure if there are health hazards from receiving IM injections that often, but there definitely can be problems with frequent IV use!
> This probably wouldn’t be better than taking it intranasally, since you definitely would need some privacy to administer it this way.
Ahh, but you wouldn't need a place to lie down. That's the real challenging part.
> Also, several last questions, Elizabeth. How are you doing on your current dose of buprenorphine?
Pretty well. I wish I could find something that worked in a more sustained way (like an AD) so I wasn't always waking up depressed and worrying about when I have to take the next dose.
> How much medication do you take?
0.3 mg (1 mL) t.i.d. I'm also taking Effexor 75 mg/day (will be increasing it to 150 mg tomorrow or the next day).
> What have you heard about the sublingual tablet of buprenorphine coming out? When are these tablet coming out?
As soon as they're FDA-approved for maintenance treatment of addiction, is the latest thing I've heard. I don't think that bupe will be effective for people with heavy heroin habits, but for people with milder habits it could be a good alternative to methadone.
> ...I would be interested in the e-mail dialogue that you may have with Cisco. Could you either publish it on this bulletin board or send me a copy at jaklnn@yahoo.com.
If we discuss anything about bupe, I'll relay it to you -- how's that? (I prefer for private conversations to be, well, private.)
> Thank you in advance to anyone who can give me more information on buprenorphine administration.
Sure, I hope I've helped clarify things for you.
-elizabeth
poster:Elizabeth
thread:86976
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20011213/msgs/87261.html