A New Protocol of Methamphetamine Dependence Treatment with Taper-Up-Off Treatment of Opium Tincture, a New Hope to Cure the Methamphetamine Addiction

Methamphetamine is a neurotoxic drug and highly addictive stimulant, which causes a significant psychological dependence in use disorder and potential brain damage even in the first use disorder. Despite decades of research, no approved pharmacotherapy is available for methamphetamine (METH) use disorder, and behavioral therapies are faced with a great lack of long-term recovery and a high rate of relapse. Opium tincture is air-dried Papaver somniferum latex, formulated for oral administration. The present study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of the new protocol for taper up-off method of opium tincture used for treatment of methamphetamine addiction in Iran, for more than 10 years. In the present study, the effectiveness of the Opium tincture taper-up-off treatment method for methamphetamine dependence called “Dezhakam step time (DST) for methamphetamine” was assessed. We used data collected via the “Congress 60” a nongovernmental organization in Iran, dedicated to addiction treatment with the DST method, from Jan 2018 until December 2020. We evaluated the treatment safety, success, and relapse rate in methamphetamine dependents treated in the “Congress 60” organization with the DST for methamphetamine method. All subjects were tested using Urine drug monitoring for both opioid and methamphetamine use after the treatment period and during the next two years as a follow-up. Findings revealed 89 percent of successful treatments for methamphetamine dependence and only 11 percent of substance abuse relapses in two years follow up. Also, less than one percent of the subjects that finished the treatment program abused opioids in two years follow up. Findings suggest the safety and effectiveness of the Opium tincture taper-up-off method in the treatment of methamphetamine dependence. The findings of the study may help to a better understanding of a safe potential novel method for methamphetamine dependence treatment and its effects on psychological dependence on psychostimulants.