Using Topiramate to Treat Alcohol and Other Addictions

A medication currently used to treat epilepsy and migraines has also been shown to be effective for reducing alcohol consumption and treating cocaine addiction. But topiramate may never receive approval for the treatment of addiction because of economic considerations.

For at least 10 years, research studies have shown that topiramate, marketed as Topamax, is effective in treating alcoholism. In 2003, a study by the Health Science Center's South Texas Addiction Research & Technology (START) Center found that subjects who were still heavy drinkers were six times more likely to remain sober for a month, compared to a placebo group.

Effective for Cutting Down

In a follow-up study a year later, the START Center researchers, led by Dr. Bankole A. Johnson, conducted a "proof-of-concept clinical trial" that concluded that topiramate has a greater effect on drinking than naltrexone and acamprosate, two medications that are approved for the treatment of alcoholism.

Reducing Overall Consumption

Traditionally, the goal of treatment for alcohol use disorders has been to achieve abstinence, but in recent years there has been more focus on harm reduction or reducing the amount of alcohol that patients drink or reducing their number of drinking days. According to research, topiramate has been found to be more effective in reducing overall alcohol consumption than the currently approved medications disulfiram, naltrexone, and acamprosate.

Focus on Harm Reduction

A recent study of alcoholism treatment throughout the Veterans Health Administration found that V.A. doctors were prescribing topiramate for their alcohol-dependent patients at a higher rate than naltrexone and acamprosate combined.

The use of the drug is not currently monitored by the V.A. because it is not approved for use as an alcohol use disorder treatment, but that has not stopped clinicians from prescribing it when the goal of treatment was reducing the harm of excessive alcohol consumption.

The authors of the V.A. study concluded that the use of topiramate over the other medications demonstrates a shift in the treatment of alcoholism toward the reduction in consumption, rather than total abstinence.

Topiramate Effective for Cocaine Addiction

Even more recently, research found that topiramate is also effective for treating cocaine addiction. A double-blind study at the University of Maryland School of Medicine of 142 adults who were seeking treatment for cocaine dependence found that topiramate increased the number of cocaine nonuse days.

Previously, studies found that topiramate could help reduce the use of the drug by users who were not seeking treatment for cocaine addiction. It works by affecting how the brain reacts to cocaine, thereby reducing craving for the drug.

Topiramate is the first drug that has been found effective in treating cocaine addiction, according to the study's authors. Another study has shown it to be effective in smoking cessation and behavioral addictions.

Topiramate No Longer Trademark Protected

Although research shows topiramate to be very effective, relatively speaking, in reducing harmful drinking and in treating cocaine addiction, the medication may not be used to its fullest potential. Because it's not approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration specifically for addiction treatment, insurance companies may not pay for prescriptions for those uses.

Additionally, because topiramate is no longer protected by trademark, and is, therefore, open to generic production, it is not economically feasible for pharmaceutical companies to pursue the expensive process necessary to gain FDA approval for the addiction treatment use of the drug.

Although topiramate is not FDA approved for the treatment of alcoholism and addiction, there is no prohibition against healthcare providers prescribing the drug for those purposes.