We hypothesize that integrating Hepatitis C into methadone and buprenorphine treatment will improve Hepatitis C outcomes as well as drug treatment outcomes in patients who are addicted to opiates. We will test this hypothesis by randomly assigning patients to receive integrated or separated care. The first group will receive Hepatitis C treatment and substance abuse treatment contemporaneously at the South Central Rehabilitation Center (SCRC). They will take both methadone or buprenorphine and Hepatitis C medications under the daily (methadone) or weekly (buprenorphine) observation of a health care provider. The second group will receive substance abuse treatment at SCRC, and go to another facility to receive Hepatitis C treatment services. These participants will take their medications on their own (without observation). We will look at outcomes such as Hepatitis C viral loads, adherence to medications, and drug treatment outcomes such as receipt of buprenorphine and methadone and urine toxicology testing.
Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Purpose
HEALTH_SERVICES_RESEARCH
Masking
NONE
Enrollment
21
South Central Rehabilitation Agency
New Haven, Connecticut, United States
Number of Participants With a Sustained Virologic Response (SVR)
SVR is defined as continued undetectable HCV viral load at 24 weeks
Time frame: 24 weeks (end of treatment)
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