Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2009, 6(6), 1917-1929; doi:10.3390/ijerph6061917
Review

Gamma Hydroxybutyric Acid (GHB) for the Treatment of Alcohol Dependence: A Review

Fabio Caputo 1,* email, Teo Vignoli 2 email, Icro Maremmani 3 email, Mauro Bernardi 2 email and Giorgio Zoli 1 email
1 Department of Internal Medicine, SS Annunziata Hospital, Cento (Ferrara), Italy 2 -“G. Fontana” Centre for the Study and Multidisciplinary Treatment of Alcohol Addiction, Department of Clinical Medicine, University of Bologna, Italy 3 Vincent P. Dole Dual Diagnosis Unit, Santa Chiara University Hospital, Department of Psychiatry, NPB, University of Pisa, Italy
* Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Received: 15 May 2009 / Accepted: 21 June 2009 / Published: 24 June 2009
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Alcohol and Public Health)
PDF Full-text Download PDF Full-Text [248 KB, uploaded 24 June 2009 03:05 CEST]
Abstract: Gamma-hydroxybutyric acid (GHB) is a short-chain fatty acid structurally similar to the inhibitory neurotransmitter γ-aminobutyric acid. Clinical trials have demonstrated that 50-100 mg/kg of GHB fractioned into three or six daily doses is able to suppress alcohol withdrawal symptoms and facilitates the maintenance of abstinence from alcohol. These studies have also shown that GHB craving episodes are a very limited phenomenon (about 10-15%). Thus, physicians with access should consider the clinical efficacy of GHB as a valid pharmacological tool for the treatment of alcohol addiction.
Keywords: gamma-hydroxybutyric acid; alcohol withdrawal syndrome; anti-craving drug

Article Statistics

Click here to load and display the download statistics.

Cite This Article

MDPI and ACS Style

Caputo, F.; Vignoli, T.; Maremmani, I.; Bernardi, M.; Zoli, G. Gamma Hydroxybutyric Acid (GHB) for the Treatment of Alcohol Dependence: A Review. Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2009, 6, 1917-1929.

AMA Style

Caputo F, Vignoli T, Maremmani I, Bernardi M, Zoli G. Gamma Hydroxybutyric Acid (GHB) for the Treatment of Alcohol Dependence: A Review. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 2009; 6(6):1917-1929.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Caputo, Fabio; Vignoli, Teo; Maremmani, Icro; Bernardi, Mauro; Zoli, Giorgio. 2009. "Gamma Hydroxybutyric Acid (GHB) for the Treatment of Alcohol Dependence: A Review." Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 6, no. 6: 1917-1929.

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health EISSN 1660-4601 Published by MDPI AG, Basel, Switzerland RSS E-Mail Table of Contents Alert