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Common antidepressant reduces methamphetamine use: Study
Research revealed adults who took mirtazapine were more likely to reduce their use of the illicit drug.
The study’s authors say while the benefits of mirtazapine are modest, they are ‘clinically important’.
Researchers hope a ‘game changing’ finding will help patients fight methamphetamine addiction, with their study revealing mirtazapine can reduce use of the drug.
Published in JAMA Psychiatry, the National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre’s Tina Trial found adults who took the generic antidepressant were ‘significantly more likely’ to reduce their methamphetamine use compared to those given placebo.
The trial tracked 339 adults with moderate to severe methamphetamine use disorder who were randomly assigned to receive either a daily, 30 mg dose of mirtazapine or a placebo for 12 weeks.
At the start of treatment, the participants, who were recruited from six outpatient clinics across the country, had used methamphetamine on 24 days out of the past 28 days on average.
The research found those in the mirtazapine group reduced the frequency of their methamphetamine use by seven days at the end of the treatment period, compared to a 4.8-day reduction in the placebo group.
While the research found ‘no unexpected safety concerns’, it did reveal that more participants who took mirtazapine reported drowsiness and weight gain than those given placebo.
Study co-author Associate Professor Shalini Arunogiri said while these benefits are modest, they are ‘clinically important’.
‘Even small reductions in methamphetamine use can translate into meaningful improvements in health and wellbeing,’ she said.
‘For many people, this trial would also have been the first time they talked to a doctor about their drug use, which gives us an opportunity to address their other healthcare needs.’
Chief Investigator Professor Rebecca McKetin it represents the first clinical trial in the world to definitively confirm that once-daily mirtazapine can be used to treat methamphetamine dependence in routine clinical practice.
‘This is not a silver bullet but it’s a very important step forward and will encourage people struggling with methamphetamine use to seek support,’ she said.
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