Heralded for its high level of care where personalized, private treatment for addiction, detoxification and healing is concerned, the Philadelphia area’s Livengrin Foundation has additionally made advancements in the medical research field. Along with combating addiction with an eye toward recovery and rehabilitation, Livengrin stakes its reputation on bold, advanced studies when it comes to possible solutions to alcohol and drug dependency.
One man at the forefront of many such examinations is Dr. James W. Cornish, the Medical Director at Livengrin whose research journey started at the University of Pennsylvania’s Research Center with its crucial discovery of Naltrexone (designed to curb alcohol or opioid use by reducing feelings of euphoria) as a treatment for alcoholism and drug abuse.
After being part of that medical find, Cornish has continued to look for new ways into curing alcohol and drug abuse and curbing their levels of desire with new insight into the famous weight loss drug Ozempic.
“I’m getting a strong, early signal, now, that there is a connection between weight loss drugs and alcoholism,” says Cornish after having spent time at the American Psychiatric Association’s annual meeting and its focus on addiction. During that conference, researchers discussed available evidence that weight loss drugs in the GLP-1 category (names such as Ozempic, Wegovy and Semaglutide) may soon become FDA-approved medication for alcoholism.
“One set of information comes from animal studies, which is how and where Penn concluded that Naltrexone would work as a treatment for alcoholism and decreasing drinking behavior,” says Cornish. “When we hear that GLP-1 has a beneficial effect on drinking activity, that’s important.”
Cornish goes on to say that several people at Livengrin who are taking GLP-1 weight loss drugs report that alcohol doesn’t taste the same, eschews any appetite for drinking, and – so far – is devoid of any nasty side effects.
“It is important, too, to emphasize to people who are losing weight with GLP-1’s to have a target weight before they start, and to eat while taking GLP-1’s because they do cut down one’s appetite,” says the Livengrin medical director.
Cornish notes that any medical breakthrough regarding alcoholism is important. At this time, there are only three known FDA-approved curatives: Disulfiram (Antabuse), which causes nausea and vomiting for those who continue drinking while on the medication; Acamprosate (Campral), and Naltrexone (mostly by Vivatrol injection).
“Naltrexone is effective in about 60 to 70 percent of the people treated for alcoholism, and was originally used for opioid use disorder as a blocker,” he says. “If someone is on Naltrexone, and takes any opioid, they’d feel no effect. But, they need to wear a bracelet explaining that to doctors or emergency workers, in case they are injured and need treatment.”
With that, Cornish expects that the alcohol-affecting GLP-1s could be FDA-approved within several years.
“So far we have animal studies and anecdotal reports from people,” he says. “But human studies can be ramped-up quickly – so as to gather all necessary evidence – and could be on the market within two years. As soon as some doctors see positive results in humans, some prescribers will go ahead and use GLP-1’s for alcohol addiction as there are no restrictions for use of the medication, off-label.”
While Cornish makes it clear that neither he nor Livengrin can currently prescribe GLP-1s for the purpose of quelling one’s taste for, and-or desire towards alcohol, the medical director does wish to share this information with his patients and Metro Philadelphia readers.
“We’re very interested, at Livengrin, in also starting a weight loss program, and to use some of these drugs,” adds Cornish. “In particular, we find that a number of our patients are distressed and depressed by their weight, and their ability to handle weight gain. Livengrin is well known for helping people, and drugs such as Ozempic-Semaglutide (originally meant as a treatment for Type 2 Diabetes) and Wegovy have FDA-approval for weight loss.
“Our interest is in seeing if people in the Philadelphia area are having serious problems with losing weight and how it affects them. It will also give Livengrin a head start with such medication when it gets FDA-approved as we, of course, are perfectly positioned for such care.”
Sponsored content produced in partnership with Livengrin Foundation.
