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Reduction of Drug Residues: Applications in Drug Rehabilitation

Presentation at the 123rd Annual Meeting of the American Public Health Association, 1995

Summary: Drug residues and their lipophilic metabolites are associated with persistent symptoms; their mobilization into blood correlates with drug cravings. The concentration of drug metabolites in both sweat and urine was measured in eight individuals who had been actively using drugs prior to detoxification. Cocaine, opiate, and benzodiazepan metabolites were detected by fluorescent immunoassay in both sweat and urine. Low levels (not indicative of use) continued to be eliminated for several weeks. In two cases, drug levels were below detection prior to treatment but became detectable during detoxification. A separate series of 249 clients with a history of drug abuse rated the severity of their symptoms before and after detoxification. Chief symptomatic complaints prior to detoxification included fatigue, irritability, depression, intolerance of stress, reduced attention span and decreased mental acuity. (These same symptoms were dominant in those who had ceased active drug abuse over a year prior to treatment.) Following detoxification, both past and current users reported marked improvements in symptoms, with most returning to normal range.

Treatment of Children with the Detoxification Method Developed by Hubbard

Presentation at the 123rd Annual Meeting of the American Public Health Association, 1995

Summary: Eighteen children from ten families were referred for detoxification. Their chief complaints included environmental sensitivity, headaches, chronic fatigue, allergies, respiratory problems and recurrent infections. In each case, the entire family had become ill following a known change (e.g., application of pesticides, installation of improperly cured carpet) in their environment. The ages of the children ranged from neonatal to 15 at the time of exposure, with treatment ages ranging from 4 to 21. Treatment resulted in improvements in symptom profiles, with at least 89 percent of the children reporting long-term improvements in their symptoms.

Precipitation of Cocaine Metabolites in Sweat and Urine of Addicts Undergoing Sauna Bath Treatment

Fifty-Seventh Annual Scientific Meeting, National Institute on Drug Abuse, College on Problems of Drug Dependency, 1995

Summary: Four subjects (three males and one female) admitted to a residential treatment program were selected for study. All met DSM-III-R Criteria for cocaine dependence and ingested cocaine by smoking. The duration of their use of the drug ranged from eight months to 18 years, and they reported cocaine use on over 75 percent of days in the month just prior to treatment. Three reported last use of cocaine within 48 hours of admission; one reported last use 25 days prior to program entry. Urine and sweat samples were collected from subjects every two to three days during detoxification and analyzed by fluorescent immunoassay. Cocaine metabolites were detectable in both sweat and urine of all subjects. Three of the four subjects showed a measurable increase in sweat or urine cocaine metabolite concentrations at the beginning of detoxification. Two subjects demonstrated negative urine samples prior to detoxification, but demonstrated the presence of metabolites when detoxification commenced.

Reduction of the Radioisotope Cs-137 Using the Detoxification Method Developed by Hubbard

Presentation at the 124th Annual Meeting of the American Public Health Associations, 1996.

Summary: Fourteen children living in the plume path of the destroyed Chernobyl reactor underwent detoxification. Each was periodically measured using a portable radiation detection system capable of measuring the characteristic gamma ray emitted during the radioactive decay of Cs-137. (Five such measures were made over the course of approximately four weeks.) Elimination rates were compared to expected rates of elimination from published studies. Children uniformly eliminated Cs-137 more rapidly than expected, with the exception of two cases in which children were eating contaminated treats from home. (Rapid elimination of Cs-137 resumed when these items were eliminated from their diets.)