Scientists at Johns Hopkins University have discovered that bupropion, an antidepressant used to facilitate smoking cessation, may also be useful in the treatment of cocaine addiction. The results of the research were published at: JAMA Network Open.
Bupropion is an antidepressant used to treat nicotine addiction, depression, anxiety disorders, and obesity. One study found that bupropion may make it easier for some people to recover from their cocaine addiction.
Between March 2015 and September 2019, 80 adult participants participated in the study. Participants suffered from cocaine and opioid addiction at the same time. They received six weeks of methadone substitution therapy to treat their opioid addiction. As a result, some participants quit smoking. For participants who couldn’t stop taking opioids, the scientists began offering monetary rewards for providing cocaine-negative urine samples.
Then 80 people from the original sample were divided into two groups. Some took the antidepressant bupropion, while the rest took a placebo. Participants were examined three times a week for 30 weeks.
Overall, bupropion was no more effective than placebo. However, 67% of those who received cash incentives and bupropion stopped cocaine at the end of the study. At the same time, only 30% of participants who took a placebo and stopped taking opioids after only six weeks were able to maintain their results at the end of the study. This means that simultaneous bupropion and cash rewards may be effective in reversing cocaine addiction, but more research is needed.