Blood pressure med may help addicts

Drug Store News, May 21, 2001

High-blood pressure medication Inderal (propanolol HCI) by Wyeth-Ayerst may help cocaine addicts conquer their addiction, according to results from a recent University of Pennsylvania study. The study, published in the April 2001 issue of Drug and Alcohol Dependence, said subjects with more severe cocaine withdrawal symptoms coped better on propranolol than placebo.

"The patients who come in with severe withdrawal symptoms generally are heavier users and are tougher to treat," said lead researcher Kyle Kampman, M.D. "We know from previous studies that they are more likely to drop out of treatment programs and are unable to detoxify. Propranolol may be one way to keep them stay in treatment longer."