The effects of Tranquival tablet on some heroin withdrawal symptoms

BACKGROUND: Individuals, during opioid withdrawal period, experience symptoms such as dysphoria, insomnia, anxiety, irritability, nausea, agitation, tachycardia, and hypertension which may trigger drug seeking behavior and relapse. This study was conducted with the aim of determining the effect of Tranquival tablets on some heroin withdrawal symptoms in addicted patients referred to an outpatient clinic. METHODS: In this single-blind quasi-experimental study, 69 patients (37 patients in intervention group and 32 in control group) suffering from heroin withdrawal syndrome were allocated randomly to study groups. In the intervention group, 1 Tranquival tablet was administered 1 hour before sleeping each night for 6 weeks. In the control group, 1 tablet of clonazepam (1 mg) was administered at the same time. The Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale (HAM-A), and visual analogue scale (VAS) were completed at the beginning, 3 weeks later, and the end of the study. Data were analyzed using Student's t-test, repeated measures analysis, and chi-square test. RESULTS: During the study period in both groups, withdrawal symptoms significantly decreased (P < 0.001); however, this difference was insignificant between the 3 assessment steps (P > 0.050). Furthermore, the Bonferroni correction showed an relationship between Tranquival and clonazepam groups in terms of mean anxiety at the begining and the end stage of assessment (P = 0.012). However, these relationships were insignificant in terms of mean sleep and muscular pain (P = 0.153 and P = 0.267, respectively). CONCLUSION: Tranquival was as effective as clonazepam in the reduction of muscular pain and anxiety, and improvement of sleep quality in patients suffering from heroin withdrawal syndrome.