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Opioid-Related DisordersPhase 3NCT03678792

Comparison of Three Opioid Detoxification Treatment Regimens

A Phase 3 study testing Buprenorphine/naloxone, Morphine and Tramadol in people with Opioid-Related Disorders and Opioid Withdrawal, run by University of Alabama at Birmingham at 1 site in United States.

Withdrawn

Withdrawn. The study stopped before anyone enrolled.

Official record
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Trial summary

Despite an increased focus on treating opioid use disorder there are relatively few studies that compare the length of time required for detoxification with medications other than buprenorphine. Morphine and tramadol have shorter half-lives than buprenorphine and can be used for opioid detoxification. Read more about this study

Who is it for?
Ages 18 to 65 yearsHealthy volunteers can take part
Conditions the study is for
Opioid-Related Disorders, Opioid Withdrawal
What is being tested?
Buprenorphine/naloxone, Morphine and Tramadol
Type of treatment
Pill or oral medicine
Could I receive a placebo?
No, everyone receives an active treatment
How many people
0 participants
Where
1 siteUnited States
Study dates
15 Nov 2019to 25 Oct 2020
Phase
Phase 3
Are there results?
None posted in the registry

Key requirements

Who can take part, as listed by the sponsor. Only the study team can confirm whether you are eligible, so take this list to your doctor.

  • Ages 18 to 65 years
  • All sexes
  • Healthy volunteers accepted
  • Adult, Older adult

Who may be able to join

  • 18-65 years of age
  • Meeting DSM-V criteria for opioid use disorder
  • Current use of opiates
  • Displaying evidence of opioid withdrawal
  • Having no significant current medical/psychiatric illness
  • English speaking

Who cannot join

  • Use of methadone or buprenorphine exclusively
  • Pregnancy
  • Hypotensive
  • History of seizures
  • Physical dependence on alcohol and/or benzodiazepines that requires treatment

Trial locations and contacts

1 site in 1 country.

United States1 site
  • Virginia Commonwealth University

    Richmond, Virginia, 23298

Other trials in United States

About this study

Official title: Time to Detox: A Patient-Centered Comparison of Length of Detoxification Treatment and Time to Naltrexone Maintenance Therapy in Opioid-Dependent Individuals

Despite an increased focus on treating opioid use disorder there are relatively few studies that compare the length of time required for detoxification with medications other than buprenorphine. Morphine and tramadol have shorter half-lives than buprenorphine and can be used for opioid detoxification. The proposed protocol aims to address this gap by directly comparing the length of treatment required for detoxification from opioids in a patient-centered manner with oral morphine, tramadol, or buprenorphine-naloxone as well as comparing the severity of withdrawal experienced by patients in each group. The investigators predict that treatment with oral morphine or tramadol will result in a faster completion of detoxification and initiation of naltrexone maintenance.

Read the detailed description

Opioid dependent individuals will be recruited for participation in the study. Upon recruitment into the randomized trial each participant will be started on an induction dosage of medication intended to suppress withdrawal (either buprenorphine-naloxone, morphine, or tramadol). Participants will remain on the induction dose for at least 24 hrs. Severity of withdrawal will be assessed twice a day using the Clinical Opiate Withdrawal Scale (COWS) and the Subjective Opiate Withdrawal Scale (SOWS). Each morning, participants will be given the option to progress on the tapering protocol (see below for individual regimens). Time to complete detoxification and initiation of naltrexone treatment will be measured. At completion of the study each participant will complete a 7-iten Detoxification Treatment Satisfaction questionnaire.

Taper Schedule Dosing Buprenorphine-Naloxone (Suboxone): Patients will get 4mg when withdrawal symptoms start. Patients can receive the first 8mg dose as early as 6hrs later, and at that point will start on an 8mg twice-a-day schedule. Each morning the patient will be assessed regarding their ability to progress to the next stage of the taper. Buprenorphine-naloxone will be tapered 2mg/day.

Tramadol: At enrollment the patients will receive a 100mg dose and can receive another 100mg every 6 hrs for 24 hrs. Each morning the patient will be assessed regarding their ability to progress to the next stage of the taper. Patients will then be tapered on the following schedule 100mg every 8 hrs, 50mg every 6 hrs, 50mg every 8 hrs, 50mg ever 12 hrs, and one final daily dose of 50mg.

Morphine: Patients receive 30mg every 4 hours for 24 hrs from when withdrawal symptoms start. Each morning the patient will be assessed regarding their ability to progress to the next stage of the taper. Patients will then be tapered on the following schedule: 30 mg every 6 hours, 30 mg every 8 hours, 30 mg every 12 hours, and one final daily 30 mg dose.

As Needed Medications: Patients in all groups will have access to the following medications as needed gabapentin 400mg every 8 hrs, loperamide 2mg every 3 hrs, odansetron 4mg every 6 hrs, ibuprofen 600mg ever 8 hrs, and hydroxyzine 25-50mg nightly.

Naltrexone Test Dose Patients will receive an oral test dose of naltrexone (25mg) either 10 days after completing the buprenorphine-naloxone taper (standard of care) or 7 days after the morphine or tramadol taper. If the oral test dose is tolerated then the patients may choose to pursue treatment with an extended release naltrexone intramuscular injection (380mg) 24 hrs later. Due to the risk for hepatocellular injury with naltrexone, patients with baseline elevations in either aspartate transaminase or alanine transaminase greater than three times the upper limit of our clinical laboratory's reference range will be ineligible to receive extended release naltrexone, but may choose to continue oral naltrexone maintenance therapy (50mg daily) (standard of care). As part of the study the investigators will record the time to naltrexone maintenance therapy.

Being tested
Buprenorphine/naloxone, Morphine, Tramadol
Medical subject headings
Opioid-Related Disorders

What participants receive

What participants receive. In a randomised study each person is assigned to one group by chance.

  • Buprenorphine/naloxoneDrug

    Participants in this group will be tapered on buprenorphine-naloxone regimen, 2mg/day

  • MorphineDrug

    Participants in this group will be tapered on an oral morphine regimen, 30-60mg/day

  • TramadolDrug

    Participants in this group will be tapered on an oral morphine regimen, 50-100mg/day

Study groups in NCT03678792
Study groupRoleWhat they receive
Buprenorphine-NaloxoneOtherStandard of Care
Receives: Drug: Buprenorphine/naloxone
MorphineExperimentalNot described
Receives: Drug: Morphine
TramadolExperimentalNot described
Receives: Drug: Tramadol

What is being measured

The primary outcome is the main question the study is designed to answer.

  1. Time to detoxification regimen completion

    Will be measured from first to last dose of tapering medication

    Measured: Five to twenty days

  2. Time to naltrexone test dose

    Measured from first dose of tapering medication to naltrexone test dose

    Measured: 12 to 30 days

Secondary outcomes (4)
  1. Subjective Opiate Withdrawal Scale

    The Subjective Opiate Withdrawal Scale (SOWS) measures the severity of 16 symptoms of opiate withdrawal as rated by the patient on a scale of 0 (not at all) to 4 (extremely). Total scores for each patient will be recorded each day and compared between treatment groups.

    Measured: Five to twenty days

  2. Clinical Opiate Withdrawal Scale

    The Clinical Opiate Withdrawal Scale (COWS) measures the severity of 11 signs and symptoms of opiate withdrawal as rated by a healthcare provider. Each symptom is rated 0 (either no symptom or abnormal sign present) to 4 or 5 (sign or symptom is prominent or severe). Scores are considered severe if greater than 36, moderately severe if 25-36, moderate if 13-25, and mild if 5-12. Maximum score possible is 48. Total scores across treatment will be compared between treatment groups.

    Measured: Five to twenty days

  3. Total use of 'as needed medications' during detoxification

    The following medications will be available to all patients throughout the the study; gabapentin, loperamide, ondansetron, ibuprofen, and hydroxyzine. The total amount of these 'as needed' medications will be recorded and compared between the different treatment groups.

    Measured: Five to twenty days

  4. Treatment Satisfaction Survey

    To assess treatment satisfaction each patient will complete a 6-question survey at the end of the study protocol. Patients will be asked to rate their satisfaction with their medication treatment, from very dissatisfied to very satisfied, how bothersome withdrawal symptoms were, from very bothersome to not at all bothersome, what if any side effects were experience, and by how much the medication reduced cravings, from not at all to completely.

    Measured: One day

Timeline

From the start of the study to its completion; the mark is today. Estimated dates are the sponsor’s plan.

  1. First posted20 Sep 2018
  2. Study start15 Nov 2019 (estimated)
  3. Primary completionSep 2020 (estimated)
  4. Study completion25 Oct 2020 (estimated)

Why it stopped: Infeasible to conduct at this time.

Resources

More details

For doctors and researchers: how the study is designed, who runs it, and its registry IDs.

Study design
Study type
Interventional
Phase
Phase 3
Primary purpose
Treatment
Allocation
Randomised
Intervention model
Parallel groups
Masking
None (open label)
Enrolment
0 participants (actual)
IDs, dates and publications
ClinicalTrials.gov ID
NCT03678792
Sponsor's protocol ID
IRB-300001612
Status last verified
Oct 2019
First submitted
17 Sep 2018
Last updated
5 Nov 2019
Results posted
No
FDA-regulated drug
Yes
FDA-regulated device
No
Individual data sharing
Undecided

Publications

  • Florence CS, Zhou C, Luo F, Xu L. The Economic Burden of Prescription Opioid Overdose, Abuse, and Dependence in the United States, 2013. Med Care. 2016 Oct;54(10):901-6. doi: 10.1097/MLR.0000000000000625.

    PubMed 27623005
  • Jiang R, Lee I, Lee TA, Pickard AS. The societal cost of heroin use disorder in the United States. PLoS One. 2017 May 30;12(5):e0177323. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0177323. eCollection 2017.

    PubMed 28557994
  • Mattick RP, Breen C, Kimber J, Davoli M. Buprenorphine maintenance versus placebo or methadone maintenance for opioid dependence. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2014 Feb 6;2014(2):CD002207. doi: 10.1002/14651858.CD002207.pub4.

    PubMed 24500948
  • Skeie I, Brekke M, Gossop M, Lindbaek M, Reinertsen E, Thoresen M, Waal H. Changes in somatic disease incidents during opioid maintenance treatment: results from a Norwegian cohort study. BMJ Open. 2011 Aug 6;1(1):e000130. doi: 10.1136/bmjopen-2011-000130.

    PubMed 22021771
  • Bukten A, Roislien J, Skurtveit S, Waal H, Gossop M, Clausen T. A day-by-day investigation of changes in criminal convictions before and after entering and leaving opioid maintenance treatment: a national cohort study. BMC Psychiatry. 2013 Oct 16;13:262. doi: 10.1186/1471-244X-13-262.

    PubMed 24131480
  • Comer SD, Sullivan MA, Yu E, Rothenberg JL, Kleber HD, Kampman K, Dackis C, O'Brien CP. Injectable, sustained-release naltrexone for the treatment of opioid dependence: a randomized, placebo-controlled trial. Arch Gen Psychiatry. 2006 Feb;63(2):210-8. doi: 10.1001/archpsyc.63.2.210.

    PubMed 16461865
  • Sullivan M, Bisaga A, Pavlicova M, Choi CJ, Mishlen K, Carpenter KM, Levin FR, Dakwar E, Mariani JJ, Nunes EV. Long-Acting Injectable Naltrexone Induction: A Randomized Trial of Outpatient Opioid Detoxification With Naltrexone Versus Buprenorphine. Am J Psychiatry. 2017 May 1;174(5):459-467. doi: 10.1176/appi.ajp.2016.16050548. Epub 2017 Jan 10.

    PubMed 28068780
  • Fishbain DA, Rosomoff HL, Cutler R. Opiate detoxification protocols. A clinical manual. Ann Clin Psychiatry. 1993 Mar;5(1):53-65. doi: 10.3109/10401239309148924.

    PubMed 8394176
  • Threlkeld M, Parran TV, Adelman CA, Grey SF, Yu J. Tramadol versus buprenorphine for the management of acute heroin withdrawal: a retrospective matched cohort controlled study. Am J Addict. 2006 Mar-Apr;15(2):186-91. doi: 10.1080/10550490500528712.

    PubMed 16595358
  • Zarghami M, Masoum B, Shiran MR. Tramadol versus methadone for treatment of opiate withdrawal: a double-blind, randomized, clinical trial. J Addict Dis. 2012;31(2):112-7. doi: 10.1080/10550887.2012.665728.

    PubMed 22540433
  • Wesson DR, Ling W. The Clinical Opiate Withdrawal Scale (COWS). J Psychoactive Drugs. 2003 Apr-Jun;35(2):253-9. doi: 10.1080/02791072.2003.10400007.

    PubMed 12924748
  • Handelsman L, Cochrane KJ, Aronson MJ, Ness R, Rubinstein KJ, Kanof PD. Two new rating scales for opiate withdrawal. Am J Drug Alcohol Abuse. 1987;13(3):293-308. doi: 10.3109/00952998709001515.

    PubMed 3687892

Questions about this trial

What is this clinical trial studying?

A Phase 3 study testing Buprenorphine/naloxone, Morphine and Tramadol in people with Opioid-Related Disorders and Opioid Withdrawal, run by University of Alabama at Birmingham at 1 site in United States.

The full registered description is in the About this study section and the official record.

Who may be eligible to take part?

The sponsor lists 6 inclusion and 5 exclusion criteria. Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening, so read the full criteria and contact a listed site.

Is this clinical trial currently recruiting?

The record says: withdrawn, as of the sponsor's last update on 5 Nov 2019. Status can change between updates, so confirm with the study contact before making plans.

Where is the study taking place?

The record lists 1 site in United States. Whether a site is taking part right now should be confirmed with that site. See every site.

What are the possible benefits and risks?

They depend on the study and the treatment, and no study can promise a benefit. The study team explains the known risks during informed consent, before anyone joins; the record itself does not list them.

What does this phase mean?

Phase 3 studies compare the treatment with the current standard treatment or a placebo in a large group, to confirm how well it works and watch for side effects.

Not every study follows the same path, and some studies (observational studies, device studies) have no phase.

Are results available for this study?

The study was withdrawn before enrolling participants, so there are no results.

How can a doctor refer a patient or contact the research team?

The record lists no contact. The official record names the sponsor, who can be asked directly. AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals.

What does the primary outcome measure?

Time to detoxification regimen completion (time frame: Five to twenty days). The study lists 2 primary outcomes in all. It is what the study was designed to measure, not a finding.

Where can I read the original study information?

On the ClinicalTrials.gov record for NCT03678792, which also lists 12 linked publications.

Does a listing mean the treatment is approved or proven to work?

No. A listing means the study is registered. It does not show that the treatment is safe, works, or is approved by a regulator.

How often is this information updated?

AzTrials copies changed records from ClinicalTrials.gov every night and reloads the whole registry every week. The sponsor last updated this record on 5 Nov 2019.

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