Home > ASME Articles > Is There a Role for Behavioral Interventions in Buprenorphine Treatment?
Four key studies showed no benefit from adding a behavioral intervention to buprenorphine plus medical management, and four studies indicated some benefit for specific behavioral interventions, primarily contingency management.
The authors examined the findings from those 4 negative trials in the context of six questions:
Conclusions: While buprenorphine is far more effective than treatments that do not involve medications for opioid use disorder, retention in buprenorphine treatment appears to be significantly poorer than in methadone maintenance treatment. High-quality medical management may suffice for some patients, but it’s hard to know which patients that might be. Physicians might consider a stepped-care model, starting new patients out with relatively low intensity treatment, adding more care and intervention for patients who appear to struggle early on. Finally, with 6-month retention rates seldom exceeding 50% and poor outcomes following dropout, innovative strategies for enhancing retention in buprenorphine treatment must be explored.