Putting HANDS to use

West Hills Hospital in Reno will be among the first in the nation to use an alternative to traditional alcohol and drug detoxification therapies.

The new procedure developed by Hythiam Inc.

of Los Angeles uses a proprietary blend of drugs and nutritional supplements to change the biochemistry of the brain and battle substance

dependency.

Alcohol, cocaine, crack cocaine and methamphetamine addictions can be targeted by the process known as the HANDS Protocol.

Physicians use a dosing algorithm provided by Hythiam, and separate protocols are used for alcohol and stimulants.

West Hills Hospital, a 95-bed, in-patient facility at 1240 E.

9th St., is one of five behavioral hospitals owned by Ardent Health Services to introduce the protocol.

"It's a new option," said Shea Davis, a spokeswoman for Nashville-based Ardent Health."It's a research-based, innovative new resource for people with chemical dependency."

Sanjay Sabnani, a spokesman for Hythiam, said the therapy addresses addiction as a medical issue rather than a moral issue.

Hythiam acquired the drug and alcohol treatment from Spanish researchers who devoted four years to clinical tests.

A major selling point for the HANDS protocol, Sabnani said, is the speed of detoxification.

In traditional alcohol treatment, he said, the potentially life-threatening process of detoxification requires five to seven days in which patients are sedated to combat their discomfort.With the HANDS protocol, detoxification is completed during two or three days.

Patients receive drug treatments for about an hour a day while they're hospitalized.

Speedy detoxification is important because most detoxification services are covered by insurance, and nearly three-quarters of the nation's illicit drug users are employed full time.

In a presentation to investment professionals, Hythiam said cost of its protocol runs about $12,000 for alcohol patients and $15,000 for stimulants patients.

The pharmaceuticals used in the HANDS protocol, Sabanani said, are FDA-approved but used for purposes other than those originally studied by the FDA.

That off-label use is a common practice among physicians.

Hythiam executives believe their company's protocol reduces cravings among drug and alcohol addicts and allows long-term treatment to move more effectively.

A study of 49 patients by the company last year found that 61 percent of the alcohol addicts and 62 percent of the drug addicts treated by its protocol still were abstaining after 90 days.

In traditional treatment models, Sabnani said, the success ratio runs about 10 percent.

Hythiam is conducting further studies of the effectiveness of the protocol.

West Hills Hospital will be among 11 organizations that have begun use of the HANDS protocol.