Detoxification of Rehabilitated Methadone Patients: Frequency and Predictors of Long-Term Success

Detoxification was evaluated in a long-term methadone treatment to ascertain how many reached a stable narcotic-free state. About 12% of the 396 patients ever admitted could be classified as stable, narcotic free at the time of interview, 14 ± 5 months after their last methadone dose. Ten percent were judged to be functioning very well and 2% appeared to be doing poorly, i.e., abuse of alcohol particularly. Some patients could detoxify, many failed, and the majority seemed to be best treated with continuing methadone maintenance. Factors associated with successful detoxification included slow detoxification, full-time employment, positive motivation for detoxification, and high degree of assimilation into the nondrug world. Factors associated with the narcotic-free state were positive motivation for detoxification, high degree of assimilation into the nondrug world, and satisfactory completion of detoxification.