Relapse Risk Factors in Heroin Addicts Treated with Naltrexone and Naltrexone-Behavioural Psychotherapy

To construct a successful treatment model for heroin addiction, it is important to define factors that contribute to relapse. In this translational ambidirectional cohort study, we evaluated 2 groups of heroin addicts that underwent the same therapeutic procedures with different outcomes (133 abstainers and 56 relapsers). The study found a new variable, “relapse marker”, defined by the synergy of the following factors: (a) non-use of tramadol before treatment (p < 0.0005), (b) absence of sense of loss of control over behaviour as a motive for treatment initiation (p = 0.048), (c) use of benzodiazepines in recovery (p < 0.0005), (d) substituting heroin addiction with gambling (p < 0.009), e) younger age (p = 0.012), and (f) explicit parental demand as a treatment motive (p = 0.040). This study reports a mathematical model that predicts relapse and inability to sustain stable abstinence as an outcome of heroin addiction treatment.