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Research Documents Success Of Drug Abuse Treatments WASHINGTON, MD -- December 15, 1997 -- According to research findings released today by the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), at least four major types of drug abuse treatment can be extremely effective in reducing drug use. In addition, drug abuse treatment produces decreases in illegal acts and increases in full-time work for most treatment modalities. The Drug Abuse Treatment Outcome Study (DATOS) tracked 10,010 drug abusers in nearly 100 treatment programs in 11 cities from 1991-1993. Patients were enrolled in one of four types of treatment: outpatient methadone treatment, outpatient drug-free behavioral treatment, long-term residential treatment and short-term inpatient treatment programs. A random sample was selected for follow-up and nearly 3,000 patients were interviewed 12 months after treatment to compare drug use and behavioral functioning before and after treatment. Major findings from DATOS include: -- Methadone treatment reduced heroin use by 70 percent. In the follow-up year, 27.8 percent of patients in outpatient methadone treatment reported weekly or more frequent heroin use, down from 89.4 percent reporting heroin use prior to admission. -- Both long-term residential and outpatient drug free treatment resulted in 50 percent reductions in weekly or more frequent cocaine use at the one-year follow-up point. -- Reductions in drug use were significantly greater for patients in treatment for three months or more. "DATOS overwhelmingly confirms the effectiveness of drug abuse treatment,” said Dr. Alan Leshner, director of NIDA. “In addition to significant reductions in drug use, treatment also led to significant improvements in other aspects of patients' lives, including their abilities to function in their families and communities. “The knowledge gained from DATOS will enable us to refine and strengthen treatment further." The average age of a patient entering treatment was 32.6 years. Ninety seven percent had used alcohol, 95 percent used cocaine and 46 percent reported having used heroin before entering treatment. The majority of patients were male (66 percent), 47 percent were African American and 13 percent were Hispanic. The average age at first treatment was 29.5 years and patients reported having been addicted for 10-15 years on average before first entering treatment. "In 1969-1973, heroin was the major problem. In 1979-1981, the problem was heroin along with the illicit use of other psychoactive drugs alone or in combination,” Dr. Leshner said. “In the 1990's cocaine has been by far the most significant drug abuse problem. DATOS shows that cocaine abuse and dependence are being treated effectively and with positive results." Drug abuse treatment services, in all four types of treatment, typically included supportive group therapy, urine monitoring during treatment, relapse prevention, post-treatment involvement in self-help groups. Despite the positive findings for the effectiveness of treatment, DATOS found that many drug abuse treatment patients received a decreasing number of health and social services in the past decade even as the need for these services has increased. More than half of patients in all four types of treatment reported that they received no services specifically for medical, psychological, vocational, family, social, or legal problems. Findings from DATOS are published in the December volume of the journal Psychology of Addictive Behaviors. E-mail this page to a friend or colleague! To print, use this version