Buprenorphine Replacement Therapy for Adolescents with Opioid Dependence: Early Experience from a Children’s Hospital-Based Outpatient Treatment Program

Opioid use by adolescents is on the rise and replacement therapy is an effective treatment. Methadone replacement has been used safely and effectively with adults, but methadone programs are often unattractive to teenagers. Buprenorphine is a new replacement therapy that has been shown to be as effective as high dose methadone and may be better suited for the treatment of younger patients. We describe the experiences of several adolescent patients who received treatment from an outpatient adolescent substance abuse program that operates within a children’s hospital, with an emphasis on issues of adolescent development.