Methadone

Methadone is used as a way to wean addicts off heroin, but it can be addictive itself. BBC News Online offers a guide to the drug.

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What is methadone?

Methadone is a long-acting synthetic painkiller that mimics the effects of heroin, but is less addictive.

It is widely used as a substitute for patients who are attempting to combat addiction to heroin.

Like heroin, it produces feelings of euphoria and sedation, but to a lesser degree.

The drug is usually provided to addicts under the supervision of a pharmacist.

It comes in the form of a green liquid, like cough mixture, poured into a plastic cup.

Can it be dangerous?

When methadone is taken in large amounts it produces side effects similar to heroin.

These include drowsiness, apathy, confusion, nausea, vomiting, suppression of breathing reflexes and constricted pupils.

In excessive quantities it will lead to coma and eventually to death.

How do methadone substitute programmes work?

Doctors must first issue a prescription for the dose, specifying the amount, the days on which it can be administered, and restricting the person who can collect the methadone to the addict him or herself.

Initially, a drug abuser is prescribed slowly increasing amounts of methadone to increase tolerance to the drug.

Then the amount is slowly decreased until they are cured of the need for the drug altogether.

However, some addicts are controversially kept on a steady dose of the drug to avoid a return to heroin once the dosage drops.

Do methadone programmes go wrong?

Some addicts become as reliant on methadone as they were on heroin.

Department of Health figures show that methadone was responsible for the deaths of 421 people in 1997.

Heroin addicts have created a vast methadone black market by selling on their doses for as little as £2.

What is being done to combat this problem?

Department of Health guidelines are being drawn up to control the availability of methadone, chiefly by ensuring that the dose is taken under medical supervision.

Does methadone have other uses?

Yes. It is an effective painkiller, and is often used to ease moderate to severe pain in patients recovering from operations and serious injuries.

It is also used to ease the pain of terminal illnesses such as cancer.

This page contains basic information. If you are concerned about your health, you should consult a doctor.