Journal of addiction medicine
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Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter Study Comparative Study
Comparisons of analgesic potency and side effects of buprenorphine and buprenorphine with ultra-low-dose naloxone.
Opioids are the most effective pain medication available, yet concerns about their safety may limit their administration to those in need. In efforts to identify analgesics with lower potential for abuse and dependence, recent evidence suggests that combinations of opioids with ultra-low doses of the opioid antagonist naloxone may enhance the analgesic effect with increased safety. This study investigated the use of buprenorphine (0.3 mg) plus ultra-low-dose naloxone (0.02 mg) (BUP + ULDN) as compared with buprenorphine alone (0.3 mg) (BUP) for the treatment of pain. ⋯ These findings suggest that BUP + ULDN is not more effective in reducing pain than BUP.