^------- Antabuse is a drug that will make you violently ill if you drink. If you take it it is very effective (no duh, if you get projectile vomit every time you drink a beer you probably won't be drinking very many beers) but considering it does have mild side effects eventually people stop taking it and then end up drinking again. Naltrexon (developed for people with opiate addictions) has been shown in studies to reduce cravings and make withdraw easier for alcoholics. I am not sure if it is currently FDA approved for that applications or not though (maybe it has, its been a while since I read the study). But its a pill not a patch, and the majority of drugs are not soluble enough (either in h20 or lipids) to be very effective transdermally (through the skin).