We know that starting buprenorphine in our patients with opioid use disorder improves a whole host of health-related outcomes, but we know much less about how long we should continue the medication. Researchers compare outcomes in patients who take buprenorphine for shorter and for longer. Their findings are revealing.

While stimulant withdrawal typically does not cause physiologic symptoms requiring immediate medication treatment, patients can be behaviorally challenging during this time. Here, researchers developed a protocol to treat patients withdrawing from methamphetamines on an inpatient unit.

Cannabis withdrawal is a largely underappreciated phenomenon that nonetheless interferes with many patients’ ability to stop using cannabis. Dr. Budney discusses some of the symptomatology of cannabis withdrawal and reviews how to discuss it with our patients.