METHAMPHETAMINE: WHERE WILL THE STAMPEDE TAKE US?

Methamphetamine, particularly "ice", currently preoccupies the media and there are a range of government initiatives which seem to follow media interest. We summarise the progress of government attention, briefly review health concerns associated with methamphetamine use, and summarise the evidence for treatments, including psychosocial interventions and medications. Amid concerns that governments will seek to fund any promising initiative in order to be perceived as responding to an epidemic, we caution that existing treatments should not be abandoned in favour of untested but potentially attractive treatments. Harm reduction and outpatient psychological treatments remain the mainstay of drug treatment programs and may be more cost-effective and broader-reaching than inpatient, medication-based detoxifications.