| Antabuse, or disulfiram as it is also known, was the | | | | pain, hyperventilation, tachycardia, and distress. Severe |
| first medicine approved for the treatment of alcohol | | | | reactions can include respiratory depression, |
| abuse and alcohol dependence by the U.S. Food and | | | | cardiovascular collapse, myocardial infarction, acute |
| Drug Administration. It is an "aversive," serving as a | | | | congestive heart failure, unconsciousness, arrhythmias, |
| physical and psychological deterrent for someone | | | | convulsions, and death. |
| trying to stop drinking. It does not reduce the person's | | | | Campral is prescribed as a "post-abstinence" or |
| craving for alcohol, nor does it treat any alcohol | | | | "anti-relapse" support medication. It has no effect on |
| withdrawal symptoms. | | | | cravings, withdrawal, or other early intervention |
| Research in Europe, where Antabuse is much more | | | | discomforts. The results of European studies seem to |
| widely used than in the United States, has shown that | | | | indicate a modest positive effect - compared to |
| long-term use of Antabuse is effective in helping some | | | | placebos - after abstinence has been attained, with |
| people stop drinking, producing abstinence rates of up | | | | relapse prevention benefits lasting few months. There |
| to 50 percent. The longer people take Antabuse, the | | | | are no such benefits for people seeking to moderate |
| more effective it is, because they develop a "habit" of | | | | their alcohol use. |
| not drinking, which reinforces the establishment of | | | | While recommending neither for nor against Campral, |
| alternative coping skills and behaviors. | | | | informed decision making suggests, at this time, a very |
| While not generally recommending the use of | | | | modest long-term benefit from Campral in widening a |
| Antabuse, some individuals find it effective and its use | | | | person's "window of opportunity" for making change. |
| isn't ruled out completely. If you are contemplating it as | | | | For some individuals even a very small increase in |
| an option, however, please read the following very | | | | results is enough reason to seek medical assistance. |
| carefully and discuss the possibilities with your | | | | Again, individual responses to medications vary greatly |
| physician. | | | | and you should explore what works best for you. |
| Antabuse works by interfering with the body's usual | | | | Even Campral's manufacturers note that it's |
| metabolic processing of alcohol into toxic acetaldehyde | | | | effectiveness is directly related to participation in |
| then into harmless acetic acid. Because of this, a build | | | | ongoing counseling. |
| up of acetaldehyde five or 10 times greater than | | | | There are no magic cures, no pills, for alcohol related |
| normally occurs when someone drinks alcohol. These | | | | problems, only opportunities for change. Success |
| high concentrations can cause reactions that range | | | | involves coordinated efforts in a variety of areas over |
| from mild to severe, depending on how much | | | | a year or more, and poor planning will always be |
| Antabuse and how much alcohol is consumed, along | | | | expensive in time, money, health, and other costs. |
| with individual tolerance of the drug. | | | | Pick your method of treating your alcohol related |
| If you drink while taking Antabuse, you may | | | | concerns with care, stay focused, and seek qualified |
| experience flushing, nausea, copious vomiting, sweating, | | | | help with a personally compatable philosophy. |
| thirst, throbbing headaches, respiratory difficulty, chest | | | | |