Suboxone is a combination of a medication called buprenorphine and naloxone. Unlike methadone, buprenorphine acts like an opioid at lower doses and like an "anti-opioid" at higher doses. As a result it can protect against heroin withdrawal, but is not as likely to lead to abuse as is methadone. Naloxone is included in Suboxone as a strategy for further reducing the danger of abuse, because its presence guarantees that if the medication is abused it will immediately set off severe withdrawal symptoms.
by
Dr. Charles Raison Psychiatrist,
Emory University Medical School
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