NIDA Directors on the Importance of Patient Preference in Opioid Medication Development

Dr. Nora Volkow, Director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), and Dr. Wilson Compton, Deputy Director of NIDA, recently published a commentary regarding a new study on extended-release injections of buprenorphine. The Australian study found that the extended-release injection of buprenorphine was well-tolerated, acceptable to patients, and produced generally more positive patient-reported outcomes compared to daily oral buprenorphine. The commentary by NIDA states that patient voices and preferences have often been left out of medication development efforts and that patient preferences and outcomes may serve as an important metric in medication trials. In addition, they NIDA notes that extended-release formulations may have benefits in settings where patients have difficulty accessing consistent care such as justice settings, populations experiencing homelessness, and in rural communities. Read more