Buprenorphine: Combatting Drug Abuse with a Unique Opioid Editors: Alan Cowan and John W. Lewis Scientists involved in the study of opioid pharmacology and drug abuse have long included among their goals the development of effective analgesics with reduced potential for abuse and dependence, and the development of effective pharmacological agents for the treatment of opioid abuse and dependence. Buprenorphine appears to have made an important scientific and clinical contribution on both of these fronts. In this timely volume, international experts describe the unusual chemical and biological characteristics which make this agent unique, from the opiate receptor, through animal pharmacology, to clinical uses, culminating in a discussion of the use of buprenorphine as a medication in the treatment of opioid abuse. Buprenorphine holds great promise as a significant addition to the therapeutic menu available to drug abuse therapists. Buprenorphine: Combatting Drug Abuse with a Unique Opioid will be indispensable to scientists and clinicians in pharmacology, neurobiology, psychiatry, neurology, and psychology, as well as to the wide spectrum of professionals involved in countering substance abuse.
