A British company is offering to get drug addicts in Ireland off heroin in five days at a cost of more than €4,000.
The company, Detox 5, has been running an advertisement in the Evening Herald over the last few weeks and says it has got a "a really good response".
The business manager of Detox 5, Mr Craig Johnson, said yesterday they were always looking for new markets.
Apart from Britain and Ireland, the company also advertises in the Netherlands, Denmark and Greece.
The company claims it has treated 33 Irish heroin addicts since 1997, most of whom came from Dublin. It says that all of the Irish people treated were self-funded.
What makes the Detox 5 programme unusual is that it is built around the drug naltrexone. The company claims the drug works by blocking an addict's desire for opiates.
Its website states: "Naltrexone blocks the effects of all opiates, such as heroin, methadone, codeine, etc."
Detox 5 claims that this method of detoxification has a much higher success rate than methadone-based programmes, currently the main method used to treat heroin addiction in Ireland.
The company told The Irish Times yesterday that it provided an after-care service for clients over the telephone for eight weeks.
One Dublin-based drug project worker said yesterday there was a severe shortage of drug-detoxification places in Ireland.
"If someone wants to get into detox here, it's difficult because of the lack of beds," said Mr Dan Moore.
He said he had seen the advertisement and had requested further information from Detox 5.
However, he said he was concerned about the limited aftercare service.
"An addict needs to be getting some form of counselling as well after detox," he said.