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Updated: Jun 8, 2026
09:16
A General Method for Evaluating Deep Brain Stimulation Effects on Intravenous Methamphetamine Self-Administration
Published on: January 22, 2016
Withdrawal symptoms in abstinent methamphetamine-dependent subjects
Todd Zorick1, Liam Nestor, Karen Miotto
1Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California at Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA.
Addiction (Abingdon, England)
|September 16, 2010
Summary
Methamphetamine withdrawal causes depression and psychosis that resolve within a week. However, methamphetamine craving persists for at least five weeks, impacting relapse risk.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Psychiatry
- Addiction Medicine
Background:
- Withdrawal symptoms are linked to relapse in drug abuse.
- Understanding methamphetamine (MA) withdrawal is crucial for treating MA dependence.
- Previous studies on MA abstinence symptoms were limited in scope and size.
Purpose of the Study:
- To determine if psychological and physical symptoms appear during early MA abstinence.
- To track the evolution of MA craving during abstinence.
- To assess if psychiatric symptoms persist beyond one month of MA abstinence.
Main Methods:
- A comparative study involving MA-dependent participants and a matched healthy control group.
- Participants maintained abstinence for up to 5 weeks.
- Data collected via MA withdrawal questionnaires, craving self-reports, and psychiatric symptom assessments.
Main Results:
- MA-dependent subjects showed moderate depressive symptoms and prevalent psychosis at study entry.
- Depressive and psychotic symptoms largely resolved within one week of abstinence.
- MA craving significantly decreased only after the second week of abstinence and persisted for five weeks.
Conclusions:
- Acute methamphetamine withdrawal includes depressive and psychotic symptoms that resolve within one week.
- Methamphetamine craving is a persistent symptom lasting at least five weeks post-abstinence.
- Findings highlight the prolonged nature of craving in MA withdrawal, informing treatment strategies.
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