Predicting biopsychosocial outcomes for heroin users in primary care treatment: a prospective longitudinal cohort study.

Background: Opiate substitution treatment for heroin users reduces mortality, illicit drug use, crime, and risk-taking behaviour, and improves physical, mental and social functioning. Few extended studies have been carried out in UK primary care to study factors predicting recovery.

Aim: To establish whether primary care opiate substitution treatment is associated with improvements in outcomes over 11 years, in delivering recovery, and to identify predictive factors.