Too Few People Who Survive Opioid Overdose Get Medication-Assisted Treatment

A new study concludes too few people who survive an opioid overdose receive medication-assisted treatment that will reduce the chance of another overdose.

The study included more than 17,500 adults who survived an opioid overdose and found only about one-third received either buprenorphine (Suboxone), methadone or naltrexone (Vivitrol), HealthDay reports.

Among people who did receive one of these medications, most did not stay on the drug for a long time, the researchers report in the Annals of Internal Medicine. The researchers found 17 percent used buprenorphine, with a median use of four months; 11 percent used methadone, with a median use of five months; and 6 percent used naltrexone, with a median use of one month.

Despite not using these drugs for long periods, methadone reduced the chance of dying by 59 percent, while buprenorphine reduced the risk by 38 percent.