New drug treatment finds new addicts

BALTIMORE, Dec. 16 (UPI) -- Buprenorphine, a promising new treatment for heroin and pain killer addiction, is breeding addicts of its own in Baltimore and other cities.

The drug, which helps addicts beat their habit by easing the pain of withdrawal and reducing ongoing cravings, has been heavily promoted by the federal government, The Baltimore Sun reported Sunday. However, that strategy may be backfiring as a growing number of users -- from inner cities to suburbs -- are using the pills to get high, the newspaper said.

The orange hexagonal pills offer a big advantage over older treatments such as methadone, which is generally distributed through special clinics, because patients can get buprenorphine from their private doctor and purchase it from a regular pharmacy.

But that advantage also is the source of some of the new problem: Because patients can get a month's worth of the pills at a time, they are selling portions of their supply on the now-thriving black market, the Sun reported.

Users are then crushing the pills and snorting or injecting them -- a dangerous practice that has already led to several deaths.