Alcoholism treatment

The opioid receptor antagonist naltrexone has proved to be useful in some patients, presumably through its ability to decrease the effects of endogenous opioid peptides in the brain. Acamprosate, an NMDA glutamate receptor antagonist, is also FDA approved for treatment of alcoholism. The aldehyde dehydrogenase inhibitor disulfiram is used adjunctively in some treatment programs. If ethanol is consumed by a patient who has taken disulfiram, acetaldehyde accumulation leads to nausea, headache, flushing, and hypotension