‘Only takes 5 minutes’: naltrexone surgical chip implant first could help end scourge of alcoholism in China, offer hope to people with other addictions
- A man whose life was almost destroyed by alcohol has become the first person in China to be implanted with a chip to cure his addiction
- Experts say the chip, which only takes a few minutes to implant, is expected to combat the craving for a drink for up to 5 months
A 36-year-old man with an addiction to alcohol has become the first person in China to receive a surgically implanted chip designed to remove his craving for a drink.
The man, surnamed Liu, underwent a five-minute procedure on April 12 at the Hunan Brain Hospital in central China, as part of a clinical trial led by Hao Wei, a former vice-president of the United Nation’s International Narcotics Control Board.
The chip is expected to combat alcohol cravings for up to five months, said Hao – an expert in substance abuse and addiction mechanisms with Central South University’s Second Xiangya Hospital – and his colleagues.
Once implanted, the chip releases naltrexone – a substance commonly used in addiction treatment to prevent relapse – which is absorbed by the body and targets receptors in the brain.
Liu, from Hunan province in central China, has been an alcoholic for 15 years.
After drinking about half a litre of Chinese liquor on an average day, he often became violent.