A University of Iowa professor is looking for problem gamblers willing to try a drug treatment. Donald Black says the drug bupropion may be the answer for some problem gamblers.He says there are no proven treatments for gambling and he says gambling’s become a proven problem for Iowans. He says there’s counseling and the 1-800-Betts-Off hotline, but he says those methods don’t help everyone. Black says the drug has shown success in other areas. He says bupropion has been around since 1983 and is a commonly prescribed antidepressant that’s also used to help people quite smoking. He says the drug is widely prescribed to treat attention deficit disorder in adults and seems to reduce impulsive behavior in general, and that’s why he’s giving it to gamblers. He says the drug could make a difference in people’s lives.Black says he hopes it would help people get greater control over their gambling impulses. This is one time when Black would like to see problem gamblers take a gamble on this test.He’s looking for healthy people, age 18 or older, with a gambling problem who are willing to take the medication over a nine-week period. He says it’s a “placebo” trial, so half the people will get a sugar pill instead of the actual medicine. For more information, call 319-353-4431, or e-mail him at:Donald-Black@uiowa.edu.
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