The goal of induction is to safely suppress opioid withdrawal as rapidly as possible with adequate doses of SUBOXONE or SUBUTEX (buprenorphine HCl sublingual tablets). The same induction procedures described in this brochure are applicable for medical withdrawal (ie, detoxification) or initiating SUBOXONE/SUBUTEX maintenance.

Because buprenorphine (the primary active ingredient of SUBOXONE and SUBUTEX) is a partial mu-opioid agonist with a maximal effect less than that of a full mu-opioid agonist (eg, morphine, methadone, heroin), the induction regimen can be more aggressive. The risk of serious adverse effects such as an overdose or treatment dropout is greater if a patient is undertreated with buprenorphine and continues to self-medicate withdrawal symptoms with opioids, alcohol, or other sedative-hypnotics, in particular benzodiazepines.

The goal of maintenance is to prevent the emergence of opioid withdrawal symptoms, suppress the patient's craving for opioids, and greatly attenuate the effect of self-administered opioids in patients who continue to episodically use illicit opioids.

In short- and long-term medical withdrawal (ie, detoxification), the goal is to rapidly achieve control of withdrawal symptoms so patients can fully participate in treatment including medical, psychosocial, psychiatric, etc.¹ SUBOXONE and SUBUTEX have been shown to be effective for relieving withdrawal symptoms during medically supervised withdrawal (ie, detoxification) from short-acting opioids and are generally comparable to, or superior to, other pharmacologic treatment options.² SUBUTEX can be administered in a residential setting or physician's office since it will be administered under supervision. SUBOXONE is the preferred medication for use at home.