Venlafaxine plus acceptance and commitment therapy enriched with compassion focus therapy in opioid-addicted patients undergoing methadone maintenance treatment: a clinical trial

Abstract

Introduction. The effect of venlafaxine and psychotherapy including acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) enriched with compassion focus therapy (CFT) was evaluated on depression, anxiety, and stress in opioid-addicted patients undergoing methadone maintenance treatment (MMT). Method. This study is a randomized clinical trial with a pre-test and post-test design. Sixty opioid-addicted patients undergoing MMT were selected by voluntary sampling, and they were divided into three groups including VNF, receiving venlafaxine (75 mg/day); ACF, receiving ACT enriched with CFT, and VACF, receiving a combination of venlafaxine and ACT enriched with CFT. The ACT enriched with CFT for participants was performed by a psychiatrist weekly. Patients were evaluated based on the anxiety-stress-depression questionnaire after 28 days of intervention. Results. The findings showed that all three intervention methods effectively affected depression, anxiety, and stress. Regarding stress, the difference in means between the two groups of VACF and ACF, as well as between VNF and ACF, was significant (P<0.05). The combined treatment of ACT enriched with CFT and venlafaxine had a more substantial effect on the research variables, i.e., depression, anxiety, and stress, compared to other interventions (P<0.05). Conclusion. The ACT enriched with CFT intervention and venlafaxine effectively reduces depression, anxiety, and stress in opioid-addicted patients undergoing MMT.