A controversial method of detox, known as “rapid detoxification,” is carried out while patients are under general anesthesia. Patients effectively “sleep through their withdrawal.” Doctors give the patients injections of medications known as opiate blockers, which put a hard stop on the effects of the heroin in their system, while also administering other drugs, like anti-anxiety medications or muscle relaxants, to help with the withdrawal. This causes rapid withdrawal from the physical effects of heroin. From start to finish, the process can last from 4-8 hours; discharge from the program can be completed 48 hours after recovery from the anesthesia. Rapid detoxification is a dangerous method, so it is only used for patients who are at risk for their withdrawal symptoms endangering their lives. It may also be employed for patients who do not respond to conventional detox programs. Ultra-Rapid Detoxification The ultra-rapid detoxification can is a complete detox in under an hour, but it is very dangerous. The National Institute on Drug Abuse reported on a study from 2006 that found “three serious adverse events” from a patient population of 35. The study concluded that using general anesthesia to sedate patients during withdrawal provided no benefit to treatment, specifically saying that no evidence was found to support claims that rapid detoxification was a “fast and painless method” by which a heroin addiction could be controlled.