[Health status of individuals dependent on opiates before and after a year of treatment in a methadone maintenance program].
The aim of this study was to compare physical status of opiate dependent patients before and after one year of participation in the methadone maintenance program (MMP). There were investigated all 113 patients (82 male, 31 female) participating in MMP no shortly then one year. There was been used an especially constructed list of physical disorders and illnesses, where severity of them was scored from 0 to 3 points. We found a great influence of a participation in MMP on an use of forbidden substances, what caused that nobody of our patients overdosed drugs. Reducing of intravenous use of drugs and a change of lifestyle caused that nobody from our 67 HIV-negative patients infected with HIV. Thanks MMP was able the systematic and successful treatment of the most common physical illnesses: superficial venous system and skin infections, internal organs mycoses, lowered body mass index, lack of menstruation, and relatively rarer ones: hypertonia, sexually transmitted diseases, tuberculosis etc. The serious problem was liver impairments of different origin, in majority cases.


CONCLUSIONS
MMPs should develop in Poland more quickly and more commonly.
Habrat
B
B
Zespół Profilaktyki i Leczenia Uzaleznień Instytut Psychiatrii i Neurologii Al. Sobieskiego 1/9, 02-957 Warszawa. habratb@ipin.edu.pl
Chmielewska
K
K
Baran-Furga
H
H
D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D006304:Health Status; D006801:Humans; D007239:Infections / Q000209:etiology / Q000628:therapy; D008107:Liver Diseases / Q000209:etiology / Q000628:therapy; D008297:Male; D008691:Methadone / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D009293:Opioid-Related Disorders / Q000150:complications / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000188:drug therapy*; D015397:Program Evaluation; D012749:Sexually Transmitted Diseases / Q000209:etiology / Q000628:therapy; D014076:Tooth Diseases / Q000209:etiology / Q000628:therapy; D014376:Tuberculosis / Q000209:etiology / Q000628:therapy
D008691:Methadone