[Pharmacological features of naltrexone and its use in the treatment of alcohol dependence].

Clinical studies performed over the last decades have indicated that combined therapy, involving pharmaco- and psychotherapy, is an optimal approach to alcohol dependence. Both pharmaco- and psychotherapy should be personalised with a careful balance between patient's needs and his/her clinical characteristics. The aim of the present article is to review the basic pharmacological features of naltrexone and its use in the treatment of alcohol dependence.