The techniques proposed include acupuncture and several methods of trans-cutaneous electrical stimulation. There are experiments showing that electro-stimulation techniques can block signs of withdrawal in rats and produce evidence of increased endogenous opioid activity. A fundamental problem is that patients in opioid withdrawal tend to be very suggestible and the placebo effects caused by being connected to a mysterious box or having needles placed under the skin are formidable. Long term management. If patients are simply discharged from the hospital after treatment of opioid withdrawal, there is a high probability of a quick return to compulsive opioid use.
Addiction is a chronic disorder that requires long term treatment.
There are numerous factors that influence relapse. One factor is that the withdrawal syndrome does not end in 5-7 days. There are subtle signs and symptoms often called the protracted withdrawal syndrome that persist for up to 6 months. These persistent changes tend to oscillate as though a new set point is being established although the mechanism has not been elucidated. Following detoxification, outpatient drug-free treatment has a low probability of success and even when the patient has graduated from a long term therapeutic community, the relapse rate is high.