Sexual education and temporary total androgen blockade in the fight against heroin addiction: a new hypothesis.
Various theories have been advanced to account for heroin addiction. One of the causes, upon which little attention has, so far, been focused, concerns the relationship with testosterone and with sexual distress. In the present report, a new strategy in the fight against heroin use is proposed which is based upon the assumption that testosterone, or its metabolites, would exert on drug seeking behaviours and drug taking behaviours through a direct effect upon the rewarding circuit or indirectly eliciting the drug craving and by leading some youths with sexual distress to seek improvement in their sexual performance with the use of drugs. The new strategy proposed here is based upon sexual and affectivity education in adolescents to prevent First Drug Use and for those already addicted, upon sexual and affectivity education and temporary total androgen blockade with pharmaceutical agents that, in a reversible fashion, block both the production and the effect of testosterone and their metabolites until complete disintoxication of drug use is reached.
Azienda Ospedaliera San Camillo Forlanini, Roma, Italy. lapera@libero.it
Giuseppe
G
La Pera
D000293:Adolescent; D000726:Androgen Antagonists / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D006556:Heroin Dependence / Q000517:prevention & control*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D012736:Sex Education
D000726:Androgen Antagonists