What Is the Suboxone Induction Phase?

December 12, 2022

What is the Suboxone induction phase? Suboxone is used to aid patients in conquering opioid use disorder (OUD). When using this drug for treating opioid dependency, patients go through three phases:

    1. Induction
    2. Stabilization
    3. Maintenance

Induction is the first phase of treatment, typically lasting 2 to 3 days. This is the phase in which the body is being detoxified from the original opioidand buprenorphine is replacing it. To reduce the risk of precipitated withdrawals (the opioid receptors suddenly experiencing the displacement of the original opioid with buprenorphine), smaller doses may be taken initially. These doses may be as small as 0.5 mg to 1 mg.

Because most pharmacies do not carry these smaller doses, 2 mg or 8 mg strips are prescribed and cut into smaller pieces. The dose required during this time lets the treating physician know how much Suboxone will be needed per day for the next two phases.

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