Please read the following information carefully
If you have a Wedgewood naltrexone implant, you don’t need to take naltrexone by mouth until the implant wears off. We advise that a second implant, if you are having one, should be inserted between 4-5weeks after the first one to try to ensure that there is some overlap between implants. If it turns out that your implants last longer than the average of around 6 weeks, subsequent implants can be put in at slightly longer intervals. (Alternatively, consider an O’Neil longer-acting implant). If you feel confident that you would take oral naltrexone reliably after the first one or two implants, you should take one tablet daily or two to three tablets every two or three days. Please arrange to take naltrexone tablets under supervision, preferably dissolved in coffee or juice to discourage cheating. People taking unsupervised naltrexone tend to stop it too soon and are much more likely to relapse. If you are running short of naltrexone, half a tablet daily will probably still provide adequate opiate blockade.
Patients with an implant should make sure they keep a small supply of naltrexone tablets as an emergency reserve. This can be used if there is an unexpected delay before the next implant or if a prescription for tablets gets delayed. Implants of any type occasionally get infected. Usually, this clears up quickly with antibiotic treatment but an abscess could develop and the implant could be lost if the abscess bursts. This seems to be very rare. If it does happen, you should take oral naltrexone half to one tablet daily and seek further advice from us immediately.
