The Los Angeles Times reports that a study appearing in today's New England Journal of Medicine says that heroin addicts who have failed at treatment attempts would be better off essentially weening themselves off of the drug than essentially going cold turkey. According to the study, addicts who were treated with diacetylmorphine--the active ingredient in heroin--remained in treatment and curbed their illegal behavior at a higher rate than those who were treated with methadone--a drug that "manage heroin cravings and blocks the drug's euphoric effects." Article [1]
Links:
[1] http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/booster_shots/2009/08/heroin-addicts-methadone-diacetylmorphine.html