Medication Treatment: Buprenorphine
What is buprenorphine (Brand names: Suboxone, Subutex)?
- Buprenorphine is a type of opioid that acts as a partial agonist in the brain.
- Buprenorphine activates the opioid receptor in the brain just enough to stop a person from going into withdrawal and experiencing strong cravings to use opioids.
- Because buprenorphine only partially switches on the opioid receptor, it does not activate the rewarding/highly pleasurable sensations like other opioids such as heroin do.
- Buprenorphine strongly attaches to the brain’s opioid receptors, which also means that it can block the effects of other opioids, such as heroin, if a person uses heroin while taking buprenorphine.
Click here to download the Fact Sheet on Buprenorphine
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