Development of a Model and Measure of Process-Oriented Quality of Care for Substance Abuse Treatment
The Journal of Behavioral Health Services and Research Online First 22 May 2009

The development of a detailed model of substance-abuse treatment (SAT) staff performance is described. The model describes the key behaviors of SAT staff. Specifically, researchers used the critical incident technique to develop the model, which includes a total of 15 dimensions, nested under four meta-dimensions: providing clinical services, employee citizenship behaviors, providing clinical support, and managerial behavior. Development and validation of a measure based on the model are also described.

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Longitudinal relations between marital aggression and alcohol problems

Psychology of Addictive Behaviors. Vol 23(1), Mar 2009, 2-13.

Results suggest that problem drinking may prevent couples from adequately handling marital disagreements, and that marital problems may lead to drinking as a form of coping with stress; couples in which the husband engages in greater problem drinking than the wife may be at increased risk.

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Binge Drinking in Childhood and Adolescence: Epidemiology, Consequences, and Interventions

Dtsch Arztebl Int 2009; 106(19): 323-8

Episodic excessive alcohol consumption is associated not only with somatic complications, but also with traffic accidents and other types of accident, violent behavior, and suicide. The more frequently a child or adolescent drinks to excess, and the younger he or she is, the greater is the risk of developing an alcohol-related disorder (alcohol misuse or dependence syndrome). In the USA, brief motivational interventions have been shown to have a small to medium-sized beneficial effect in reducing further binge drinking and its complications

The intervention HaLT ("Stop," also an acronym for Hart am Limit—"near the limit") is performed in a number of regions in Germany. Further types of brief motivating intervention should be developed and evaluated to prevent the development of alcohol-related disorders, where indicated, in children and adolescents that engage in binge drinking.

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Schizophrenia, Substance Abuse, and Violent Crime

JAMA. 2009;301(19):2016-2023.

Schizophrenia was associated with an increased risk of violent crime in this longitudinal study. This association was attenuated by adjustment for substance abuse, suggesting a mediating effect. The role of risk assessment, management, and treatment in individuals with comorbidity needs further examination.

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Efficacy of alcohol screening in the accident and emergency department managed by reception staff: a pilot study

Emergency Medicine Journal 2009;26:424-425;

This pilot study demonstrates that self-completion of screening materials is possible before a patient is seen by clinical staff.

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Complete Suppression of Craving in Alcohol-Dependent Individuals: Is It Possible?

CNS Drugs. 23(5):361-367, May 19, 2009.

A recent preliminary, single-case report suggested that baclofen not only reduces but may completely suppress craving in alcohol-dependent individuals. The current article summarizes the neurobiological basis of drug craving, and the pharmacological targets that have been shown to be involved in modulating such craving. The potential usefulness of agents that suppress craving is discussed.

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Alcohol Use Among Pregnant and Nonpregnant Women of Childbearing Age — United States, 1991–2005
MMWR May 22, 2009 / Vol. 58 / No. 19 pp. 529-532

To examine the prevalence of any alcohol use and binge drinking among pregnant women and nonpregnant women of childbearing age in the United States and to characterize the women with these alcohol use behaviors, CDC analyzed 1991–2005 data from Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) surveys. The find­ings indicated that the prevalence of any alcohol use and binge drinking among pregnant and nonpregnant women of childbearing age did not change substantially from 1991 to 2005.

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National Report Finds Low Levels of Substance Use among Pregnant Women, but Higher Levels in New Mothers

A new national report provides both encouraging and discouraging news about the use of substances by pregnant women and new mothers. Based on a nationwide survey, the report by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) suggests that most women are heeding warnings about the dangers that substance use during pregnancy can pose to fetuses and are abstaining -- especially in the latter stages of their pregnancies.

However, this report, as well as a new study published today by the U.S. Center for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, show that the number of women who drink alcohol while pregnant is disturbingly high, despite past Surgeon Generals’ warnings about the dangers of drinking alcohol while pregnant. According to a 15 year-study by the CDC, the number of women who drink alcohol while pregnant is not decreasing – with approximately 1 in 8 women drinking any amount of alcohol while pregnant.

In addition, the data from the SAMHSA report suggest that once they give birth, many new mothers resume the use of alcohol, cigarettes, illicit drugs or engage in binge drinking

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The Effects of Twelve-Step Participation on Social Support: A Longitudinal Investigation within a Recovery Home Sample

International Journal of Self Help and Self Care Volume 4, Number 3 / 2005-2006, pp.239 - 255

Mutual-aid/12-step involvement has been found to relate to numerous positive facets of social support. However, this present investigation is the first known study to longitudinally assess the influence of 12-step involvement on social support within a U.S. Oxford House recovery home sample (N = 897).

As predicted, AA/NA attendance predicted social networks containing more general social support over a 1 year period, and it is recommended that individuals in recovery lacking positive social support might turn to 12-step groups to develop these necessary forms of support.

However, 12-step participation failed to predict network drinking behaviors or support for drinking. Although counterintuitive, it is possible that 12-step groups impact general support more than recovery-specific types of support. It is true that more of AA's 12 steps deal with mending relationships than alcohol use.

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NICE contributes to the Health Select Committee inquiry on Alcohol

What is the scale of ill-health related to alcohol misuse, and what are the consequences for the NHS? To address alcohol-related health problems, should the drinking culture in England change, and if so, how? These questions form part of the terms of reference for the House of Commons Health Select Committee (HSC), which is currently holding an inquiry on alcohol and its impact on health.

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Alcohol taxation policy in Australia: public health imperatives for action
A statement by the Royal Australasian College of Physicians

MJA 2009; 190 (8): 437-439

Introduction —
Alcohol harm is at an unacceptable level — Price is the most effective measure to control consumption and harm in a population — There is good Australian evidence of the effectiveness of public health-focused alcohol taxes — Alcohol tax policies are cost-effective — A public health-centred alcohol tax policy — Has the alcopops tax worked? —
Conclusion —

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Driver- and Passenger-Based Estimates of Alcohol-Impaired Driving in the U.S., 2001–2003

American Journal of Preventive Medicine Volume 36, Issue 6, June 2009, Pages 515-522

Episodes of driver- and passenger-reported AID increased substantially between the middle 1990s and the early 2000s. The passenger estimates suggest that drivers may under-report AID by about 50%. Public health interventions to reduce AID should give equal consideration to impaired drivers and their passengers.

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Movies as a vehicle to teach addiction medicine

International Review of Psychiatry, Volume 21, Issue 3 June 2009 , pages 213 - 217

Dependence on a substance and the role of medical practitioners in this health problem can be perceived as an enigma.

Movies, as a tool for teaching, can be a powerful means of engaging, clarifying and educating students within the addiction medicine arena. Popular mythologies and stereotypes of drug use (including alcohol) and users in cinema can be explored within a learning environment aiding the understanding of this complex topic, thereby improving the therapeutic commitment to addiction medicine.

There is a responsibility of the teacher to use this tool with care so as not to perpetuate the mythologies of addiction as often portrayed within commercial cinema. Tried and tested use of this potent educational aid, with suggestions for further development, are outlined in this article.

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Request Reprint E-Mail: gavin.cape@stonebow.otago.ac.nz
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Statistics on Alcohol, England 2009


This statistical report presents a range of information on alcohol use and misuse drawn together from a variety of published sources and presented in a user friendly format.

The report aims to present a broad picture of health issues relating to alcohol in England and covers topics such as drinking habits and behaviours among adults and school children, drinking related ill health and mortality, affordability of alcohol and alcohol related costs.

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The Influence of Different Types of Alcoholic Beverages on Disrupting HAART Outcome

Alcohol and Alcoholism Advance Access published online on May 18, 2009

Liquor was associated with thymus deterioration and thus with poorer viro-immune outcomes after HAART. Subtyping participants by alcohol consumption patterns seems to be clinically relevant and needs to be accounted for in future studies.

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Understanding and Treating Alcohol Craving and Dependence: Recent Pharmacological and Neuroendocrinological Findings

Alcohol and Alcoholism Advance Access published online on May 18, 2009

There is a substantial need for discovering innovative ways to provide more information on the neurobiology of alcohol dependence as well as to discover more effective pharmacotherapies for alcohol dependence. Current research includes exploring new pathways able to modulate alcohol craving. In particular, research shows that several neuroendocrinological pathways may be involved in the neurobiology of alcohol craving and dependence.

The first part of this review examines recent clinical findings on the role of feeding-related peptides in alcohol craving and dependence.

Second, this review focuses on the need to discover new medications that may prove to be safe and effective in the treatment of alcohol dependence. For example, the GABAB receptor has been suggested as a new possible neuropharmacological target in the treatment of alcohol dependence. Accordingly, the second part of this review examines recent clinical findings on the role of the selective GABAB receptor agonist baclofen in the treatment of alcohol-dependent subjects. These two distinct topics will be both analyzed and discussed.

The final part of this review discusses possible connections between these two topics, as an example of possible interactions between psychoneuroendocrinology and neuropharmacology. These possible interactions could lead to future intriguing research aimed at understanding and treating alcohol craving and dependence.

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NEWS RELEASE - BAUCUS, GRASSLEY RELEASE POLICY OPTIONS FOR FINANCING COMPREHENSIVE HEALTH CARE REFORM
May 18, 2009

Options are the final of three papers in Finance leaders’ health reform effort

Washington, DC – Washington, DC ‐ Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus (D‐Mont.) and Ranking Member Chuck Grassley (R‐Iowa) today released policy options for financing reform of America's health care system. The options released today are the third and final round of policy options for discussion before the Finance Committee marks up legislation in June.


. . . . . Increase Taxes on Alcoholic Beverages – Current law imposes an excise tax on alcoholic beverages,charging $13.50 per proof gallon, which translates to about 21 cents per ounce of alcohol. Because of this measurement, the excise tax treats different types of alcohol differently. Beer is measured by the barrel and the tax rate per barrel is $18 or about 10 cents per ounce of alcohol. The current tax on wine is $1.07 per gallon or about 8 cents per ounce of alcohol. The policies present the option of
standardizing the tax on alcohol and increase the excise tax to $16 per proof gallon. . . . . .

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Senate proposes alcohol, soda tax to fund Health care plan

By CARRIE BUDOFF BROWN 5/18/09

Smokers and diet-soda drinkers would escape higher taxes under a new proposal for how to pay for President Barack Obama’s sweeping health reform overhaul. But if you drink alcohol or sugary drinks, you might have to pay up under a plan released Monday by the Senate Finance Committee.

The committee proposed slapping an excise tax on “sugar-sweetened beverages” for the first time, and imposing a uniform tax across wine, beer and liquor, which are currently taxed a different levels.

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Changes in Food, Alcohol and Cigarettes Consumption during Transition: Evidence from Russia

Selected Paper for Agricultural and Applied Economics Association>2009 Annual Meeting, July 26-28, 2009, Milwaukee, Wisconsin

This paper examines the changes in nutritional behavior of Russian adults over the ten-year transition period, between 1994 and 2004. We present evidence on the impact of individual as well as regional characteristics on changes in fat, protein, alcohol and cigarette consumption, and on diversity of diet.

The results from a dynamic empirical model suggest that among microeconomic determinants, initial levels of consumption, gender, holding a university degree, and having access to a garden plot have a significant impact on the changes in consumption behavior in Russia.

Regarding the macroeconomic variables, economic growth has a significa impact on changes in fat and protein consumption and on alcohol use, while unemployment changes significantly impact protein intake, alcohol consumption and the diversity of diet.

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Recovery Month Releases Final Report Highlighting the 2008 Recovery Month Observance

(5/6/09)

This report details the results of the 2008 Recovery Month campaign and the influence it has had on raising community awareness about substance use disorders as a disease, treatment, and recovery. Recovery Month showcases the positive impact community voices can have on those seeking a path of recovery.

Download the 2008 report.

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The Earlier the More? Differences in the Links Between Age at First Drink and Adolescent Alcohol Use and Related Problems According to Quality of Parent-Child Relationships
J. Stud. Alcohol Drugs 70: 346-354, 2009.

By promoting a high-quality relationship, prevention efforts might trigger a spiral of healthy developments during adolescence, including family well-being in early adolescence, late AFDs, lower alcohol-use levels, and eventually fewer alcohol-related problems in late adolescence.

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Sources of Unreliability in the Diagnosis of Substance Dependence

J. Stud. Alcohol Drugs 70: 475-481, 2009

These results are consistent with prior findings that the SSADDA yields reliable diagnoses and criterion counts for the more prevalent substance-dependence diagnoses. The present analysis extends these findings by showing that the greatest source of unreliability was the subjects' report. This underscores the need for efforts to increase the reliability of substance-dependence diagnoses (and by extension other self-reported phenotypic features) by enhancing the consistency of the information provided by the subjects interviewed.

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An Evaluation of the Full Level of Response to Alcohol Model of Heavy Drinking and Problems in COGA Offspring

J. Stud. Alcohol Drugs 70: 436-445, 2009

The results support the applicability of the LR-based model of heavy drinking and alcohol problems in the COGA offspring, a group with different demography compared with the two other samples of adolescents tested to date. The modest differences observed across samples will be evaluated in future research to enhance understanding of how the model operates across socioeconomic groups

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Sexual orientation, substance use behaviors and substance dependence in the United States

Addiction Published Online: 12 May 2009

Results support previous research finds of heightened risk of substance use and substance dependence among some sexual minority groups and point to the need for research that examines the reasons for such differences. Results also highlight important gender differences and question previous findings indicating uniformly higher risk for substance dependence among sexual minorities. Risks appear to vary based on gender and how sexual orientation is defined. Findings have implications for more effective prevention and intervention efforts that target subgroups at greatest risk.

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Request Reprint E-Mail: plius@umich.edu

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Associations of cohort and socio-demographic correlates with transitions from alcohol use to disorders and remission in metropolitan China
Addiction Published Online: 12 May 2009



This study was the first to reveal in a Chinese population that qualitatively different risk factors might operate during the different stages of progression from alcohol use to disorders. Further research is needed to clarify the mechanisms underlying these differences in order to guide prevention programmes.


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Request Reprint E-Mail: singlee@cuhk.edu.hk
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Older adults' alcohol consumption and late-life drinking problems: a 20-year perspective

Addiction Published Online: 12 May 2009

A substantial percentage of older adults who consume alcohol engage in guideline-defined excessive drinking and incur drinking problems. The finding that older men may be more likely than older women to experience problems when they drink beyond guideline levels suggests that alcohol guidelines for men should not be set higher than those for women.

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Tests of Causal Links Between Alcohol Abuse or Dependence and Major Depression

Arch Gen Psychiatry. 2009;66(3):260-266.

The findings suggest that the associations between AAD and MD were best explained by a causal model in which problems with alcohol led to increased risk of MD as opposed to a self-medication model in which MD led to increased risk of AAD.

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Request Reprint E-Mail: david.fergusson@chmeds.ac.nz

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