Pharmacodynamic Actions

Naltrexone hydrochloride is a pure opioid antagonist. It markedly attenuates or completely blocks, reversibly, the subjective effects of intravenously administered opioids.

When coadministered with morphine, on a chronic basis, naltrexone hydrochloride blocks the physical dependence to morphine, heroin and other opioids.

Naltrexone hydrochloride has few, if any, intrinsic actions besides its opioid blocking properties. However, it does produce some pupillary constriction, by an unknown mechanism.

The administration of naltrexone hydrochloride is not associated with the development of tolerance or dependence. In subjects physically dependent on opioids, naltrexone hydrochloride will precipitate withdrawal symptomatology.

Clinical studies indicate that 50 mg of naltrexone hydrochloride will block the pharmacologic effects of 25 mg of intravenously administered heroin for periods as long as 24 hours. Other data suggest that doubling the dose of naltrexone hydrochloride provides blockade for 48 hours, and tripling the dose of naltrexone hydrochloride provides blockade for about 72 hours.

Naltrexone hydrochloride blocks the effects of opioids by competitive binding (i.e., analogous to competitive inhibition of enzymes) at opioid receptors. This makes the blockade produced potentially surmountable, but overcoming full naltrexone blockade by administration of very high doses of opiates has resulted in excessive symptoms of histamine release in experimental subjects.

The mechanism of action of naltrexone hydrochloride in alcoholism is not understood; however, involvement of the endogenous opioid system is suggested by preclinical data. Naltrexone hydrochloride, an opioid receptor antagonist, competitively binds to such receptors and may block the effects of endogenous opioids. Opioid antagonists have been shown to reduce alcohol consumption by animals, and naltrexone hydrochloride has been shown to reduce alcohol consumption in clinical studies.

Naltrexone hydrochloride is not aversive therapy and does not cause a disulfiram-like reaction either as a result of opiate use or ethanol ingestion.

Pharmacokinetics

Naltrexone hydrochloride is a pure opioid receptor antagonist. Although well absorbed orally, naltrexone is subject to significant first pass metabolism with oral bioavailability estimates ranging from 5 to 40%. The activity of naltrexone is believed to be due to both parent and the 6-β-naltrexol metabolite. Both parent drug and metabolites are excreted primarily by the kidney (53% to 79% of the dose), however, urinary excretion of unchanged naltrexone accounts for less than 2% of an oral dose and fecal excretion is a minor elimination pathway. The mean elimination half-life (T 1/2) values for naltrexone and 6-β-naltrexol are 4 hours and 13 hours, respectively. Naltrexone and 6-β-naltrexol are dose proportional in terms of AUC and C max over the range of 50 to 200 mg and do not accumulate after 100 mg daily doses.

Absorption

Following oral administration, naltrexone undergoes rapid and nearly complete absorption with approximately 96% of the dose absorbed from the gastrointestinal tract. Peak plasma levels of both naltrexone and 6-β-naltrexol occur within one hour of dosing.

Distribution

The volume of distribution for naltrexone following intravenous administration is estimated to be 1350 liters. In vitro tests with human plasma show naltrexone to be 21% bound to plasma proteins over the therapeutic dose range.

Metabolism

The systemic clearance (after intravenous administration) of naltrexone is ~3.5 L/min, which exceeds liver blood flow (~1.2 L/min). This suggests both that naltrexone is a highly extracted drug (>98% metabolized) and that extrahepatic sites of drug metabolism exist. The major metabolite of naltrexone is 6-β-naltrexol. Two other minor metabolites are 2-hydroxy-3-methoxy-6-β-naltrexol and 2-hydroxy-3-methyl-naltrexone. Naltrexone and its metabolites are also conjugated to form additional metabolic products.

Elimination

The renal clearance for naltrexone ranges from 30 to 127 mL/min and suggests that renal elimination is primarily by glomerular filtration. In comparison, the renal clearance for 6-β-naltrexol ranges from 230 to 369 mL/min, suggesting an additional renal tubular secretory mechanism. The urinary excretion of unchanged naltrexone accounts for less than 2% of an oral dose; urinary excretion of unchanged and conjugated 6-β-naltrexol accounts for 43% of an oral dose. The pharmacokinetic profile of naltrexone suggests that naltrexone and its metabolites may undergo enterohepatic recycling.

Hepatic and Renal Impairment

Naltrexone appears to have extra-hepatic sites of drug metabolism and its major metabolite undergoes active tubular secretion (see Metabolism above). Adequate studies of naltrexone in patients with severe hepatic or renal impairment have not been conducted (see PRECAUTIONS: Special Risk Patients).

Clinical Trials

General

Information for Patients It is recommended that the prescribing physician relate the following information to patients being treated with naltrexone hydrochloride:

You have been prescribed naltrexone hydrochloride as part of the comprehensive treatment for your alcoholism or drug dependence. You should carry identification to alert medical personnel to the fact that you are taking naltrexone hydrochloride. A naltrexone hydrochloride medication card may be obtained from your physician and can be used for this purpose. Carrying the identification card should help to ensure that you can obtain adequate treatment in an emergency. If you require medical treatment, be sure to tell the treating physician that you are receiving naltrexone hydrochloride therapy.You should take naltrexone hydrochloride as directed by your physician.

• Advise patients that if they previously used opioids, they may be more sensitive to lower doses of opioids and at risk of accidental overdose should they use opioids after naltrexone hydrochloride treatment is discontinued or temporarily interrupted. It is important that patients inform family members and the people closest to the patient of this increased sensitivity to opioids and the risk of overdose.
• Advise patients that because naltrexone hydrochloride can block the effects of opioids, patients will not perceive any effect if they attempt to self-administer heroin or any other opioid drug, in small doses while on naltrexone hydrochloride Further, emphasize that administration of large doses of heroin or any other opioid to try to bypass the blockade and get high while on naltrexone hydrochloride, may lead to serious injury, coma., or death.
• Patients on naltrexone hydrochloride may not experience the expected effects from opioid-containing analgesic, antidiarrheal, or antitussive medications.
• Patients should be off all opioids, including opioid-containing medicines, for a minimum of 7 to 10 days before starting naltrexone hydrochloride in order to avoid precipitation of opioid withdrawal. Patients transitioning from buprenorphine or methadone may be vulnerable to precipitation of withdrawal symptoms for as long as two weeks. Ensure that patients understand that withdrawal precipitated by administration of an opioid antagonist may be severe enough to require hospitalization if they have not been opioid-free for an adequate period of time, and is different from the experience of spontaneous withdrawal that occurs with discontinuation of opioid in a dependent individual. Advise patients that they should not take naltrexone hydrochloride if they have any symptoms of opioid withdrawal. Advise all patients, including those with alcohol dependence, that it is imperative to notify healthcare providers of any recent use of opioids or any history of opioid dependence before starting naltrexone hydrochloride to avoid precipitation of opioid withdrawal.
• Advise patients that naltrexone hydrochloride may cause liver injury. Patients should immediately notify their physician if they develop symptoms and/or signs of liver disease.
• Advise patients that they may experience depression while taking naltrexone hydrochloride. It is important that patients inform family members and the people closest to the patient that they are taking naltrexone hydrochloride and that they should call a doctor right away should they become depressed or experience symptoms of depression.
• Advise patients that naltrexone hydrochloride has been shown to be effective only when used as part of a treatment program that includes counseling and support.
• Advise patients that dizziness may occur with naltrexone hydrochloride treatment, and they should avoid driving or operating heavy machinery until they have determined how naltrexone hydrochloride affects them.
• Advise patients to notify their physician if they:

        o   become pregnant or intend to become pregnant during treatment with naltrexone hydrochloride.

        o   are breast-feeding.

        o   experience other unusual or significant side effects while on naltrexone hydrochloride therapy.

Laboratory Tests

Naltrexone hydrochloride does not interfere with thin-layer, gas-liquid, and high pressure liquid chromatographic methods which may be used for the separation and detection of morphine, methadone or quinine in the urine. Naltrexone hydrochloride may or may not interfere with enzymatic methods for the detection of opioids depending on the specificity of the test. Please consult the test manufacturer for specific details.

Drug Interactions

Studies to evaluate possible interactions between naltrexone hydrochloride and drugs other than opiates have not been performed. Consequently, caution is advised if the concomitant administration of naltrexone hydrochloride and other drugs is required.

The safety and efficacy of concomitant use of naltrexone hydrochloride and disulfiram is unknown, and the concomitant use of two potentially hepatotoxic medications is not ordinarily recommended unless the probable benefits outweigh the known risks.

Lethargy and somnolence have been reported following doses of naltrexone hydrochloride and thioridazine.

Patients taking naltrexone hydrochloride may not benefit from opioid containing medicines, such as cough and cold preparations, antidiarrheal preparations, and opioid analgesics. In an emergency situation when opioid analgesia must be administered to a patient receiving naltrexone hydrochloride, the amount of opioid required may be greater than usual, and the resulting respiratory depression may be deeper and more prolonged (see PRECAUTIONS)

Carcinogenesis, Mutagenesis and Impairment of Fertility The following statements are based on the results of experiments in mice and rats. The potential carcinogenic, mutagenic and fertility effects of the metabolite 6-β-naltrexol are unknown.

In a two-year carcinogenicity study in rats, there were small increases in the numbers of testicular mesotheliomas in males and tumors of vascular origin in males and females. The incidence of mesothelioma in males given naltrexone at a dietary dose of 100 mg/kg/day (600 mg/m 2/day; 16 times the recommended therapeutic dose, based on body surface area) was 6%, compared with a maximum historical incidence of 4%. The incidence of vascular tumors in males and females given dietary doses of 100 mg/kg/day (600 mg/m 2/day) was 4%, but only the incidence in females was increased compared with a maximum historical control incidence of 2%. There was no evidence of carcinogenicity in a two-year dietary study with naltrexone in male and female mice.

There was limited evidence of a weak genotoxic effect of naltrexone in one gene mutation assay in a mammalian cell line, in the Drosophila recessive lethal assay, and in non-specific DNA repair tests with E. coli. However, no evidence of genotoxic potential was observed in a range of other in vitro tests, including assays for gene mutation in bacteria, yeast, or in a second mammalian cell line, a chromosomal aberration assay, and an assay for DNA damage in human cells. Naltrexone did not exhibit clastogenicity in an in vivo mouse micronucleus assay.

Naltrexone (100 mg/kg/day [600 mg/m 2/day] PO; 16 times the recommended therapeutic dose, based on body surface area) caused a significant increase in pseudopregnancy in the rat. A decrease in the pregnancy rate of mated female rats also occurred. There was no effect on male fertility at this dose level. The relevance of these observations to human fertility is not known.

Pregnancy:Teratogenic Effects

Pregnancy Category C:- Naltrexone has been shown to increase the incidence of early fetal loss when given to rats at doses ≥ 30 mg/kg/day (180 mg/m 2/day; 5 times the recommended therapeutic dose, based on body surface area) and to rabbits at oral doses ≥ 60 mg/kg/day (720 mg/m 2/day; 18 times the recommended therapeutic dose, based on body surface area). There was no evidence of teratogenicity when naltrexone was administered orally to rats and rabbits during the period of major organogenesis at doses up to 200 mg/kg/day (32 and 65 times the recommended therapeutic dose, respectively, based on body surface area).

Rats do not form appreciable quantities of the major human metabolite, 6-β-naltrexol; therefore, the potential reproductive toxicity of the metabolite in rats is not known.

There are no adequate and well-controlled studies in pregnant women. Naltrexone hydrochloride should be used during pregnancy only if the potential benefit justifies the potential risk to the fetus.

Labor and Delivery Whether or not naltrexone hydrochloride affects the duration of labor and delivery is unknown.

Nursing Mothers In animal studies, naltrexone and 6-β-naltrexol were excreted in the milk of lactating rats dosed orally with naltrexone. Whether or not naltrexone hydrochloride is excreted in human milk is unknown. Because many drugs are excreted in human milk, caution should be exercised when naltrexone hydrochloride is administered to a nursing woman.

Pediatric Use The safe use of naltrexone hydrochloride in pediatric patients younger than 18 years old has not been established.

Reported Adverse Events

Naltrexone hydrochloride has not been shown to cause significant increases in complaints in placebo-controlled trials in patients known to be free of opioids for more than 7 to 10 days. Studies in alcoholic populations and in volunteers in clinical pharmacology studies have suggested that a small fraction of patients may experience an opioid withdrawal-like symptom complex consisting of tearfulness, mild nausea, abdominal cramps, restlessness, bone or joint pain, myalgia, and nasal symptoms. This may represent the unmasking of occult opioid use, or it may represent symptoms attributable to naltrexone. A number of alternative dosing patterns have been recommended to try to reduce the frequency of these complaints.

Alcoholism

In an open label safety study with approximately 570 individuals with alcoholism receiving naltrexone hydrochloride, the following new-onset adverse reactions occurred in 2% or more of the patients: nausea (10%), headache (7%), dizziness (4%), nervousness (4%), fatigue (4%), insomnia (3%), vomiting (3%), anxiety (2%) and somnolence (2%).

Depression, suicidal ideation, and suicidal attempts have been reported in all groups when comparing naltrexone, placebo, or controls undergoing treatment for alcoholism.

Although no causal relationship with naltrexone hydrochloride is suspected, physicians should be aware that treatment with naltrexone hydrochloride does not reduce the risk of suicide in these patients (see PRECAUTIONS).

Opioid Addiction

The following adverse reactions have been reported both at baseline and during the naltrexone hydrochloride clinical trials in opioid addiction at an incidence rate of more than 10%:

Difficulty sleeping, anxiety, nervousness, abdominal pain/cramps, nausea and/or vomiting, low energy, joint and muscle pain, and headache.

The incidence was less than 10% for:

Loss of appetite, diarrhea, constipation, increased thirst, increased energy, feeling down, irritability, dizziness, skin rash, delayed ejaculation, decreased potency, and chills.

The following events occurred in less than 1% of subjects:

Respiratory:

Nasal congestion, itching, rhinorrhea, sneezing, sore throat, excess mucus or phlegm, sinus trouble, heavy breathing, hoarseness, cough, shortness of breath.

Cardiovascular:

Nose bleeds, phlebitis, edema, increased blood pressure, non-specific ECG changes, palpitations, tachycardia.

Gastrointestinal:

Excessive gas, hemorrhoids, diarrhea, ulcer.

Musculoskeletal:

Painful shoulders, legs or knees; tremors, twitching.

Genitourinary:

Increased frequency of, or discomfort during, urination; increased or decreased sexual interest.

Dermatologic:

Oily skin, pruritus, acne, athlete's foot, cold sores, alopecia.

Psychiatric:

Depression, paranoia, fatigue, restlessness, confusion, disorientation, hallucinations, nightmares, bad dreams.

Special senses:

Eyes-blurred, burning, light sensitive, swollen, aching, strained; ears-“clogged”, aching, tinnitus.

General:

Increased appetite, weight loss, weight gain, yawning, somnolence, fever, dry mouth, head“pounding”, inguinal pain, swollen glands,“side” pains, cold feet,“hot spells.”

Postmarketing Experience Data collected from postmarketing use of naltrexone hydrochloride show that most events usually occur early in the course of drug therapy and are transient. It is not always possible to distinguish these occurrences from those signs and symptoms that may result from a withdrawal syndrome. Events that have been reported include anorexia, asthenia, chest pain, fatigue, headache, hot flushes, malaise, changes in blood pressure, agitation, dizziness, hyperkinesia, nausea, vomiting, tremor, abdominal pain, diarrhea, palpitations, myalgia, anxiety, confusion, euphoria, hallucinations, insomnia, nervousness, somnolence, abnormal thinking, dyspnea, rash, increased sweating, vision abnormalities, and idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura.

In some individuals the use of opioid antagonists has been associated with a change in baseline levels of some hypothalamic, pituitary, adrenal, or gonadal hormones. The clinical significance of such changes is not fully understood.

Adverse events, including withdrawal symptoms and death, have been reported with the use of naltrexone hydrochloride in ultra rapid opiate detoxification programs. The cause of death in these cases is not known (see WARNINGS).

Laboratory Tests In a placebo controlled study in which naltrexone hydrochloride was administered to obese subjects at a dose approximately five-fold that recommended for the blockade of opiate receptors (300 mg per day), 19% (5/26) of naltrexone hydrochloride recipients and 0% (0/24) of placebo-treated patients developed elevations of serum transaminases (i.e., peak ALT values ranging from 121 to 532; or 3 to 19 times their baseline values) after three to eight weeks of treatment. The patients involved were generally clinically asymptomatic, and the transaminase levels of all patients on whom follow-up was obtained returned to (or toward) baseline values in a matter of weeks.

Transaminase elevations were also observed in other placebo controlled studies in which exposure to naltrexone hydrochloride at doses above the amount recommended for the treatment of alcoholism or opioid blockade consistently produced more numerous and more significant elevations of serum transaminases than did placebo. Transaminase elevations occurred in 3 of 9 patients with Alzheimer's Disease who received naltrexone hydrochloride (at doses up to 300 mg/day) for 5 to 8 weeks in an open clinical trial.

Treatment of Overdosage

In view of the lack of actual experience in the treatment of naltrexone hydrochloride overdose, patients should be treated symptomatically in a closely supervised environment. Physicians should contact a poison control center for the most up-to-date information.

Treatment of Alcoholism

A dose of 50 mg once daily is recommended for most patients The placebo-controlled studies that demonstrated the efficacy of naltrexone hydrochloride as an adjunctive treatment of alcoholism used a dose regimen of naltrexone hydrochloride 50 mg once daily for up to 12 weeks. Other dose regimens or durations of therapy were not evaluated in these trials.

Naltrexone hydrochloride should be considered as only one of many factors determining the success of treatment of alcoholism. Factors associated with a good outcome in the clinical trials with naltrexone hydrochloride were the type, intensity, and duration of treatment; appropriate management of comorbid conditions; use of community-based support groups; and good medication compliance. To achieve the best possible treatment outcome, appropriate compliance-enhancing techniques should be implemented for all components of the treatment program, especially medication compliance.

Treatment of Opioid Dependence