Methadone treatment program proves effective

Source: CCTV.com | 01-05-2008 11:46

A Methadone treatment program for drug addicts in China's residential communities is helping to contain drug abuse and prevent AIDS.

The Center for Disease Control and Prevention says more than 100,000 drug addicts have been treated in Methadone clinics since the program began in 2004. Clinics are averaging more than 200 patients a day in Shanxi, Ningxia, Hubei and Jiangsu.

For a registered Methadone patient, the monthly intravenous drug use will be reduced from just under 70 percent to 8.9 percent after six months' treatment and to 8.8 percent after one year. The AIDS infection rate for ordinary drug addicts is five percent, while the rate for patients after a year of methadone treatment is only 0.7 percent.

Editor:Xiong Qu