Reduction of Drug Residues During Drug Rehab

Reduction of Drug Residues - Application in Drug Rehabilitation

(Continued)

Treatment Population

249 clients with a history of drug abuse rated the severity of their symptoms before and after treatment with the detoxification program. 87 symptoms were rated on a scale of 0 (none) to 5 (severe).

These clients could be divided into three subgroups:

a) 59 clients who were doing the detoxification program as part of a drug rehabilitation program;

b) 52 clients who had used drugs recently but were occasional drug users without marked addiction; and

c) 49 clients whose last reported use of drugs was from one to ten years prior to the detoxification program.

d) Sufficient liquids to offset the loss of body fluids through sweating.

Sample Collection for Drug Measurement

Eight clients with a current drug addiction program agreed to contribute urine and sweat samples as they went through both withdrawal (if needed) and the detoxification program.

Four smoked cocaine almost daily and had been using cocaine from eight months to 18 years prior to treatment. Three were frequent users of amphetamines and valium (diazepam). One used cocaine and heroin.

Urine and sweat samples were collected on program entry and every two to three days during the detoxification program.

The concentration of drug residues in urine and sweat samples was determined by the polarized fluorescent immunoassay (PIF) technique at a 95% sensitivity of approximately ng/ml.

Results: Symptom Severity

Clients reported the severity of symptoms both before and after detoxification treatment. Irritability, fatigue, depression, intolerance of stress, reduced attention span, decreased mental acuity, nervousness and impaired memory were the main complaints of these clients.

Following treatment, the self-reported symptom severity improved markedly. The reduction in symptom severity was statistically significant for 80 of the 87 symptoms, and highly significant for 74 of them, including each of the chief complaints of this population.

Drug metabolites were found in both sweat and urine for seven of the eight clients participating in this study. Five of the eight clients showed an increase in the concentration of drug metabolite in sweat or urine when the detoxification program was initiated.

Drug metabolites were not detected in the urine of two clients before the start of detoxification treatment but were detected after the program began. This supports the argument that drug metabolites were metabolized from stores.

Drug metabolites were detectable in both sweat and urine for up to five weeks following the start of detoxification treatment.

Discussion

The detoxification method developed by L. Ron Hubbard has previously been shown safe and effective in reducing levels of various chemicals in humans, including polychlorinated biphenyls and pesticides and in decreasing the adverse signs and symptoms associated with exposure to these chemicals.

Use of this detoxification program at Narconon is based on the premise that drug residues remain in body tissues long after active use has ceased and that these residues contribute to both persistent symptoms and the craving for drugs.

This study demonstrates that the detoxification program developed by Hubbard is effective in alleviating many of the symptomatic complaints reported by drug users.

Cocaine, amphetamine and benzodiazepine metabolites are found in both the urine and the sweat of individuals who have used these drugs as they undergo detoxification treatment.

Individuals report marked reductions in drug craving following this program.

Considering the high level of recidivism in drug users, the potential effects of drug residues on recidivism and the alleviation of these effects through detoxification, it becomes evident that detoxification treatment has broad application in the drug rehabilitation field.

Source: "Reduction of Drug Residues: Applications in Drug Rehabilitation," a presentation to the 123rd Annual Meeting of the American Public Health Association. Authors: Megan Shields, M.D.; F. Tennant, M.D., Dr. P.H.; Shelley Beckmann, Ph.D.; and R. Michael Wisner.

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