Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Opioid Use Disorder

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Opioid Use Disorder is a highly adaptable treatment and can be delivered in person or virtually in individual or group-based settings.

Evidence for the intervention

There is moderate quality and heterogeneous evidence for Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Substance Use Disorder (CBT-SUD). Effect sizes tend to be higher for individuals receiving CBT-SUD for cannabis than for opioids or stimulants, and there have been mixed results when examining the effects of CBT-SUD as an adjunct to medication for opioid use disorder (OUD). A systematic review and meta-analysis published in 2020 concluded “the evidence cautiously suggests that for OUD, there may be some benefit to adding non-individual CBT to buprenorphine therapy.” We therefore give this a rating of yellow.

Evidence-based Scale

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Opioid Use Disorder (CBT-OUD) can be delivered as individual or group therapy. It has increasingly been delivered via telehealth or as an app-based intervention, though this format is less studied than face-to-face delivery. Principles of CBT also underlie models that engage concerned significant others or family members, such as the Community Reinforcement Approach and Family Behavioral Therapy.