Treatment of Stimulant Use Disorders: Current Practices and Promising Perspectives Discussion Paper

Currently used approaches to treat stimulant use disorders are still poorly organized and not based on behavioral interventions but on long-term residential treatment, at times involuntary. Most of existing services are relying only on psychosocial strategies, often not effective and not integrated with pharmacological interventions and social support. A group of experts from 25 countries and UNODC staff met to share their views and develop this discussion paper on the treatment of PSUD that outlines the existent comprehensive interventions, including the use of promising medications. The group collected existing scientific evidence and practitioners’ opinions formulating preliminary suggestions for integrating psychosocial and pharmacological therapy, which resulted in this discussion paper.