Diversion and Abuse of Buprenorphine

legally available in the U.S.) has been reported in the Texas poison control center data (Exhibit
31). International brand names include Anorfin (DK); Bunondol® (PL); Buprenex® (CA);
Buprex® (PT); Buprex (ES); Finibron (IT); Magnogen® (AR); Norphin® (IN); Pentorel® (IN);
Prefin (ES); Subutex (AU, AT, DK, FR, DE, IT, PT, SE, CH); Temgesic® (AR, AU, AT, BE);
Temgesic (BR, CZ, DK, FI, FR, DE, GB, IE, IT, LU, MX, NL, NO, ZA, SE, CH); Temgésic®
(FR); Tidigesic® (IN); and Transtec® (DE). See Exhibit 32 for pictures of some of these
different pills.
120
100
80
60
40
20
0
Buprenorphine Assessment: Final Report
Exhibit 31. Texas Poison Control Center Calls Related
to Human Exposure to Buprenorphine: 1998-2005
1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005
Source: Texas Department of State Health Services
Temgesic
Other Forms
Findings: The number of calls to the Northern New England Poison Control Center regarding
buprenorphine is increasing and may reflect increased public knowledge and questions about
buprenorphine as a treatment modality. Mentions of buprenorphine formulations which are not
legally available in the U.S. indicate illicit importation of buprenorphine can occur and should
be monitored in the poison control center datasets.
Report from the Corrections System. One official in the Vermont Department of Corrections
reported that buprenorphine was coming into the State’s correctional institutions. The official
thought there was more buprenorphine than methadone or oxycodone. Buprenorphine was
described as easy to obtain on the street, as opposed to oxycodone, which was said to not be
widely used in Vermont (this is not borne out by the medical examiner data). There were several
other statements by corrections officials that perhaps buprenorphine was being used to “get high”
by incoming inmates who were not in active treatment in the community. It was further
suggested that buprenorphine was being brought into the corrections facilities to sell to inmates
who wanted to “get high” or to help them detoxify from heroin. Some inmates dependent on
heroin reported stockpiling buprenorphine prior to incarceration.
Findings: Seizures of buprenorphine smuggled into prisons corroborate the impression that
some inmates are dependent on opioids and were bringing in buprenorphine to detoxify
themselves, since the corrections system does not offer medical detoxification.
Community Epidemiology Work Group (CEWG). CEWG members have 20 minutes at each
semi-annual meeting to report their latest findings. At the January 2006 meeting, only the
members from Los Angeles and Baltimore included buprenorphine in their oral reports.
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