Developing an effective treatment for addiction to narcotics is still an ongoing battle, as it has been for a very long time. With so few treatments available, and considering their pluses and minuses, it is difficult to determine if there is one treatment that stands head and shoulders above the rest.
For that reason, we can only compare the available treatments to each other. In this article, it is Suboxone vs. Subutex. We will look at how each one treats these addictions, as well as the benefits and side effects.
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How They Are Similar
Aside from the fact that they are both used to treat narcotics addiction, these two drugs have one item in common: They both contain a component called buprenorphine. This component tricks the brain into thinking that the body has received the opioid in abundant supply, only without the usual euphoria.
They also have in common five side effects:
1. Constipation
2. Nausea
3. Headaches
4. Dizziness
5. Drowsiness
How They Differ
In their makeup, there is one difference. Suboxone is made up of buprenorphine and naloxone, while Subutex is only made up of buprenorphine.
Subutex also fell short in that users still managed to find ways to take the drug intravenously to get the same high they could get with heroin or other prescription narcotics. This only worked against its real purpose – to fight against the addiction.
As brought out earlier, these two drugs share five side effects in common. However, there are a host of side effects not shared in common, ones that are unique to each drug.
Suboxone has one major advantage over Subutex
With the presence of naloxone in the formula, abusing the drug becomes far less probable. This makes the drug a good candidate to treat severe addiction cases, as well as post-treatment relapses.
Conclusion
Suboxone vs. Subutex – which one is the winner?
All things considered, to hold one of these two drugs up as the big winner would only feed controversy addicts. The fact is, there is nothing outstandingly conclusive about the comparison. They each are used to treat narcotics addiction. Each has its own advantages. They share similar side effects, and they each possess their own unique ones.
We must also consider that each patient is likely to react differently to one drug or the other. A doctor may recommend one of them based on what he or she thought was the right fit for the patient. But the proof is in the pudding. It is only after a patient has actually taken the drug when a doctor knows for sure that it is safe and potentially effective for the patient.
We also know that as amazing as a drug is, it only has a chance to produce good results if it is taken as directed. If the patient does not take the drug at the prescribed intervals, or according to the prescribed dosage, more harm than good is going to result.
So the best way to determine the winner is to ask your doctor and go through the steps necessary.