Epilepsy drug could help treat addicts

An epilepsy drug used in Europe and elsewhere can stop cocaine use in hard-core addicts, in part by eliminating their craving for cocaine, according to the first study to assess the treatment's effects on addicts.

The study at the New York University School of Medicine, found that 40% of addicts who took gamma-vinyl-GABA (GVG) - also known as vigabatrin and by the trade name Sabril – were able to stay clean for more than 60 days.

Over the past decade, researchers had studied GVG in animals, and published numerous articles showing that the treatment in animals blocks the rise in dopamine levels produced by cocaine, nicotine and many other addicting substances. Dopamine is a brain chemical associated with the pleasurable effects of addicting drugs.

The subsequent study involved 20 addicts, 19 men and one woman, who had been using cocaine daily for three to 15 years. All of the addicts had expressed a desire to kick their habit. Under the trial's guidelines, they had to provide urine samples twice a week and answer daily questionnaires about their drug use and cravings.

In the first 10 days of the trial, eight subjects dropped out because they didn't want to stop using cocaine. Among the 12 remaining subjects, eight (or 40% of the total enrolled) completed the trial and were tapered off GVG. At the time of the study's publication, all eight of the subjects remain free of cocaine more than four weeks after their GVG treatment ended. Moreover, the people who quit using cocaine reported that their craving did not return once they tapered off GVG.

"These addicts were able to stay clean even without leaving the environment that had fostered their addiction. They gained weight, they got jobs, and they are now living with their families," said lead researcher Dr Jonathan Brodie.

(gmcg)