We report the results of an ‘open’ multicentre study evaluating the use, tolerability and therapeutic efficacy of the sodium salt of 4-hydroxybutyric acid (GHB) for the medium-term treatment of withdrawal symptoms in 179 patients with alcohol dependence followed up as outpatients. The follow-up of patients was 6 and 12 months after drug discontinuation. Following a daily oral administration of 50mg/kg for approximately 6 months, no serious systemic or single-organ consequences leading to drug discontinuation were reported, and tolerability was fair in all patients. Eleven subjects (10.1%) snowed craving for the drug and voluntarily increased their doses (6–7 times the recommended levels). GHB led to complete abstinence during drug administration in 78.0% of the patients. A significant reduction of compulsive desire (‘craving’) was observed in parallel, as deduced from evaluation of a specific questionnaire, the Alcohol Craving Scale. At follow-up examination, 43 of the treated subjects remained abstinent at 6 months, and 30 subjects were abstinent for 1 year after drug discontinuation.