Substance Abuse clinical trials at UCLA

This research aims to determine the effects and safety of cannabidiol (CBD) (ATL5 softgel capsules) as an adjunctive therapy for patients, who have Opioid Use Disorder and are taking buprenorphine + naloxone or methadone. Buprenorphine + naloxone and methadone is an approved treatment for Opioid Use Disorder, but relapse to opioid misuse is common among patients who receive this treatment. Finding an adjunctive treatment that reduces relapse for these patients would be helpful. We will recruit participants from the Tarzana Treatment Center (TTC) in the San Fernando Valley. They will be receiving buprenorphine + naloxone or methadone as part of residential therapy. Potential participants who pass initial screening and wish to continue in the study will provide written, informed consent and will complete a 2-day evaluation, including blood and urine tests, questionnaires about their mood, medical, psychiatric and drug use history and physical exam. Up to 60 participants who meet all eligibility criteria will be invited to complete baseline assessments (blood and urine tests, questionnaires), and will be assigned randomly to receive CBD (600mg/day) or placebo, corresponding to two groups of up to 30 participants each. After the baseline measurements, participants will take part in a 28-day treatment phase for 4 weeks. They will take the study medication under supervision (CBD 300 mg twice daily or placebo). Questionnaires on opioid craving, withdrawal, and mood symptoms will be administered daily during the treatment period excluding weekends. After the 28-day intervention, participants will complete the questionnaires and undergo urine drug tests in 4 weekly follow-up visits. The study will last ~10 weeks, comprising three periods: a screening period (2-weeks when participants are stabilized on buprenorphine + naloxone or methadone in residential treatment at the Tarzana Treatment Center), a treatment period (4 weeks when study CBD or placebo is administered at Tarzana Treatment Center), and a follow-up period (4 weeks after termination of the test intervention).

The aim of the study is to test the effectiveness of the Patient Decision Aid for Opioid Use Disorder (PtDA-MAT) by conducting a stepped-wedge cluster-randomized trial in CA H&SS (stratified by rural vs. non-rural areas) for adults with OUD. Patient outcomes will be tracked by (1) personal assessments (baseline, 3 months, and 6 months): drug use, overdose, healthcare utilization, and (2) clinical and administrative records (over approximately 24 months): drug treatment status and retention, physical and mental health diagnoses, arrest, incarceration, controlled substance use, and mortality. Multilevel models will be applied to test the intervention effects, controlling for possible temporal trends.