The therapeutic potential of gamma-hydroxybutyric acid for alcohol dependence: balancing the risks and benefits. A focus on clinical data

There is an increasing interest in studying the role of GABAergic medications in the treatment of alcohol dependence. The GABAergic drug gamma-hydroxybutyric acid (GHB) has been investigated in Europe as a possible treatment for alcohol dependence. In some European Countries, GHB has been approved a...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inExpert opinion on investigational drugs Vol. 18; no. 5; p. 675
Main Authors Addolorato, Giovanni, Leggio, Lorenzo, Ferrulli, Anna, Caputo, Fabio, Gasbarrini, Antonio
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published England 01.05.2009
Subjects
Alcoholism - drug therapy
Alcoholism - physiopathology
Alcoholism - psychology
Animals
Clinical Trials as Topic - methods
Clinical Trials as Topic - trends
Humans
Risk Factors
Sodium Oxybate - adverse effects
Sodium Oxybate - therapeutic use
Substance-Related Disorders - etiology
Substance-Related Disorders - prevention & control
Substance-Related Disorders - psychology
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Summary:There is an increasing interest in studying the role of GABAergic medications in the treatment of alcohol dependence. The GABAergic drug gamma-hydroxybutyric acid (GHB) has been investigated in Europe as a possible treatment for alcohol dependence. In some European Countries, GHB has been approved as a treatment for alcohol dependence. However, this drug has also shown addictive properties, therefore raising questions about its safety in treating alcohol-dependent subjects. More recent research is focusing on the possibility of identifying alcohol-dependent subtypes without risk of developing GHB abuse. Finally, GHB and naltrexone combined together represent a possible approach deserving future investigations.
ISSN:1744-7658
DOI:10.1517/13543780902905855