Chemists, clinics complain short supply of drugs used in therapy for alcoholics is affecting success rate

Getting people to get off alcohol in the city has become a much tougher task for clinics because of the non-availability of drugs necessary for the therapy. According to chemists, doctors and clinics, one of the key drugs widely recommended for de-addiction is not available in stores across the city. "Short supply of these drugs is increasingly becoming a problem. Without pills it becomes almost impossible to kill the urge to gulp some wine," said a 30-year-old man, an alcoholic undergoing de-addiction therapy.


Liquor lust: People at a de-addiction clinic in the city. File pic

Take the case of Disulfiram, which costs Rs 30 for four tablets, has been out of stock for quite some time now. Medical distributor V K Jain, owner of Bhawani Enterprises from Sadashiv Peth, said, "This is a key drug widely recommended by doctors and used by alcoholics for the past eight years. I don't know why the drug is in short supply in the market. It's true that the supply has been decreasing in the past two years. But in the past couple of months, it has almost stopped."