NEUROELECTRIC THERAPY (NET) IN ADDICTION DETOXIFICATION

Abstract

NeuroElectric Therapy (NET) is a benign and rapid, non-pharmacological detoxification treatment for the chemical dependent, either in-patient or out-patient, using very small amounts of electric current transcranially, with electtodes applied above the mastoid process. The pocketsize stimulator is used continuously for 7 to 10 days (3-4 days for nicotine), without supplementary drugs. Within this treatment period it eliminates the acute symptoms and also ameliorates the Chtonic Withdrawal Syndrome, which otherwise could last 18 months or longer, to a very substantial degree. By the end of treatment, 95% of 102 consecutive patients claimed they were free of craving, 75% that they were free of anxiery. NET has a reported drop-out rate of 1.6% over a period of seven years. The basis of this therapeutic success has been the marriage of precision clinical techniques to highly specific combinations of electrical current parameters, both developed over 20 years of reported clinical and research work. It is suggested that the mechanism of action may be the rapid restoration to normal of abnormal neurotransmitter levels by specific electrical signals. Clinical treatments and double-blind studies are briefly described and reviewed, with new data on sleep effects.