"Consistent with the findings of previous research with buprenorphine,1-4 the frequency of illicit opioid use decreased significantly from baseline to induction and was lowest during maintenance for all three groups. The mean percentages of patients who completed the 24-week study, which ranged between 39 and 48 percent, were similar to those found in previous studies, including one conducted in an office-based setting.1-4 Therefore, the majority of patients who entered this study either left treatment or were considered appropriate for transfer to a more structured treatment setting with methadone. Nonetheless, although we did not demonstrate the superiority of extended counseling or thrice-weekly medication dispensing over the relatively limited nurse-administered counseling and once-weekly dispensing, our findings support the feasibility of buprenorphine–naloxone maintenance in primary care.10,13,21"

Source

Fiellin, David A., MD, Michael V. Pantalon, PhD, Marek C. Chawarski, PhD, Brent A. Moore, PhD, Lynn E. Sullivan, MD, Patrick G. O'Connor, MD, MPH, and Richard S. Schottenfeld, MD, "Counseling plus Buprenorphine-Naloxone Maintenance Therapy for Opioid Dependence," New England Journal of Medicine Vol. 355, No. 4, July 27, 2006, p. 371.
http://content.nejm.org/cgi/r…