Intravenous Ethanol Infusions Can Mimic the Time Course of Breath Alcohol Concentrations Following Oral Alcohol Administration in Healthy Volunteers

Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research Volume 33 Issue 5, Pages 938 - 944

Despite the use of standardized doses and controlled experimental conditions, there was substantial between-subject variability in the BrAC time course following oral administration of alcohol. The PBPK-model-based infusion method can mimic the BrACs attained with oral alcohol for individual subjects. This method provides a platform to evaluate effects attributable to the route of administration on the response to alcohol, as well as the influence of determinants such as family history of alcoholism on the alcohol response.

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Blood Glucose Level, Alcohol Heavy Drinking, and Alcohol Craving During Treatment for Alcohol Dependence: Results From the Combined Pharmacotherapies and Behavioral Interventions for Alcohol Dependence (COMBINE) Study
Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research Published Online: 26 May 2009

A link between pretreatment glucose levels and heavy drinking during treatment was found, suggesting a role of glucose in predicting heavy alcohol consumption. Although caution is needed in the interpretation of these results, elevated glucose and heavy drinking may be affected by a common mechanism and manipulations affecting glucose regulation may influence alcohol consumption.

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Request Reprint E-Mail: lorenzo_leggio@brown.edu _________________________________________________

Sensitization of Ventral Tegmental Area Dopamine Neurons to the Stimulating Effects of Ethanol
Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research Published Online: 26 May 2009

The results indicate that repeated local ethanol exposure of the p-VTA produced neuroadaptations in DA neurons projecting to the NAc shell, resulting in a persistent increase in the sensitivity of these neurons to the stimulating effects of ethanol.

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Extreme College Drinking and Alcohol-Related Injury Risk

Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research Published Online: 26 May 2009

College health clinics may want to focus limited alcohol injury prevention resources on students who frequently engage in extreme drinking, defined in this study as 8+M/5+F drinks per day, and score high on sensation-seeking disposition.

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Request Reprint E-Mail: marlon.mundt@fammed.wisc.edu

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A Double-Blind Trial of Gabapentin Versus Lorazepam in the Treatment of Alcohol Withdrawal
Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research Published Online: 26 May 2009

Gabapentin was well tolerated and effectively diminished the symptoms of alcohol withdrawal in our population especially at the higher target dose (1200 mg) used in this study. Gabapentin reduced the probability of drinking during alcohol withdrawal and in the immediate postwithdrawal week compared to lorazepam.

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Screening for Hazardous Drinking Using the Michigan Alcohol Screening Test–Geriatric Version (MAST-G) in Elderly Persons With Acute Cerebrovascular Accidents

Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research
Published Online: 26 May 2009

The 10-item SMAST-G and 2-item MMAST-G are brief screening tests that show comparable effectiveness in detecting hazardous drinking in elderly patients with acute CVA compared with the full 24-item MAST-G. Implications for research and clinical practice are discussed.

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Request Reprint E-Mail: djgreene@med.miami.edu

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Externalizing Psychopathology and Risk for Suicide Attempt: Cross-Sectional and Longitudinal Findings From the Baltimore Epidemiologic Catchment Area Study

The Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease: May 2009 - Volume 197 - Issue 5 - pp 293-297

Externalizing psychopathology appears to be an independent short-term risk factor for suicidal behavior interval , but appears less powerful in predicting long-term suicide risk .

These findings underline the importance of assessment of suicidality among individuals presenting with externalizing disorders.

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Request Reprint E-Mail: Ahills@exchange.hsc.mb.ca

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Systematic Review of interventions for children with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders

BMC Pediatrics 2009, 9:35

There is limited good quality evidence for specific interventions for managing FASD, however seven randomized controlled trials that address specific functional deficits of children with FASD are underway or recently completed.

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The Relationships of the Level of Response to Alcohol and Additional Characteristics to Alcohol Use Disorders Across Adulthood: A Discrete-Time Survival Analysis

Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research Published Online: 26 May 2009

The findings illustrate that LR is a unique risk factor for AUDs across adulthood, and not simply a reflection of a broader range of risk factors. The continued investigation of how LR is related to AUD onset later in life will help inform treatment providers about this high-risk population, and future longitudinal evaluations will utilize DTSA to assess rates of AUD remission as well as the onset of drinking outcomes in adolescent samples.

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Acute and chronic alcohol dose: population differences in behavior and neurochemistry of zebrafish

Genes, Brain and Behavior Published Online: 19 Feb 2009

The results showed genetic differences in numerous aspects of alcohol-induced changes, including, for the first time, the behavioral effects of withdrawal from alcohol and neurochemical responses to alcohol. For example, withdrawal from alcohol abolished shoaling and increased dopamine and 3,4-dihydroxyphenylacetic acid in AB but not in SF fish.

The findings show that, first, acute and chronic alcohol induced changes are quantifiable with automated behavioral paradigms; second, robust neurochemical changes are also detectable; and third, genetic factors influence both alcohol-induced behavioral and neurotransmitter level changes.

Although the causal relationship underlying the alcohol-induced changes in behavior and neurochemistry is speculative at this point, the results suggest that zebrafish will be a useful tool for the analysis of the biological mechanisms of alcohol-induced functional changes in the adult brain.

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Request Reprint E-Mail: robert_gerlai@yahoo.com

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Alcohol use and comorbid anxiety, traumatic stress, and hopelessness among Hispanics
Addictive Behaviors Article in Press 4 May 2009

This study provides evidence of the need for further investigation of stress, trauma, anxiety, hopelessness, and alcohol abuse in Mexican American residents and to inform future prevention and treatment efforts to improve both the physical and mental health of this population.

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Validation of the drinking refusal self-efficacy questionnaire in Arab and Asian samples
Addictive Behaviors Article in Press 22 May 2009

Exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis demonstrated that the DRSEQ-R has a three factor structure. Internal consistency ranged from α .96 to α .86 and validity was good. This study offers evidence of the utility of this measure with Arab and Asian samples.

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Cost-Effectiveness of Screening for Unhealthy Alcohol Use with %Carbohydrate Deficient Transferrin: Results From a Literature-Based Decision Analytic Computer Model

Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research Published Online: 4 May 2009

Adding %CDT to questionnaire-based screening for unhealthy alcohol use was cost-effective in our literature-based decision analytic model set in typical primary care conditions. Screening with %CDT should be considered for adults up to the age of 60 when the prevalence of unhealthy alcohol use is 15% or more and screening questionnaires are negative.

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Request Reprint E-Mail: alok.kapoor@BMC.org

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Mood-Related Drinking Motives Mediate the Familial Association Between Major Depression and Alcohol Dependence

Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research Published Online: 4 May 2009

The results are consistent with an indirect role for mood-related drinking motives in the etiology of depression and alcohol dependence, and suggest that mood-related drinking motives may be a useful index of vulnerability for these conditions.

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Can Serotonin Transporter Genotype Predict Craving in Alcoholism?

Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research Published Online: 4 May 2009

These results not only provide support for the hypothesis that alcoholics who are L-carriers have greater alcohol craving and possibly greater propensity for drinking but also propose that there is an important 5-HTT gene-by-environment interaction that alters cue craving response for alcohol.

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Request Reprint E-Mail: aitdaoud@virginia.edu

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Gender differences in 16-year trends in assault- and police-related problems due to drinking

Addictive Behaviors Article in Press 4 May 2009

This study examined the frequency and predictors of physical assault and having trouble with the police due to drinking over 16 years among women and men who, at baseline, were untreated for their alcohol use disorder.

Predictors examined were the personal characteristics of impulsivity, self-efficacy, and problem-solving and emotional-discharge coping, as well as outpatient treatment and Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) participation.

Women and men were similar on rates of perpetrating assault due to drinking, but men were more likely to have had trouble with the police due to drinking. Respondents who, at baseline, were more impulsive and relied more on emotional discharge coping, and less on problem-solving coping, assaulted others more frequently during the first year of follow-up. Similarly, less problem-solving coping at baseline was related to having had trouble with the police more often at one and 16 years due to drinking.

The association between impulsivity and more frequent assault was stronger for women, whereas associations of self-efficacy and problem-solving coping with less frequent assault and police trouble were stronger for men. Participation in AA was also associated with a lower likelihood of having trouble with the police at one year, especially for men.

Interventions aimed at decreasing impulsivity and emotional discharge coping, and bolstering self-efficacy and problem-solving coping, during substance abuse treatment, and encouragement to become involved in AA, may be helpful in reducing assaultive and other illegal behaviors.

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Request Reprint E-Mail: ctimko@stanford.edu

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Happyhour, a Ste20 Family Kinase, Implicates EGFR Signaling in Ethanol-Induced Behaviors

Cell.2009.03.020

The consequences of alcohol use disorders (AUDs) are devastating to individuals and society, yet few treatments are currently available. To identify genes regulating the behavioral effects of ethanol, we conducted a genetic screen in Drosophila and identified a mutant, happyhour (hppy), due to its increased resistance to the sedative effects of ethanol.

Hppy protein shows strong homology to mammalian Ste20 family kinases of the GCK-1 subfamily. Genetic and biochemical experiments revealed that the epidermal growth factor (EGF)-signaling pathway regulates ethanol sensitivity in Drosophila and that Hppy functions as an inhibitor of the pathway.

Acute pharmacological inhibition of the EGF receptor (EGFR) in adult animals altered acute ethanol sensitivity in both flies and mice and reduced ethanol consumption in a preclinical rat model of alcoholism. Inhibitors of the EGFR or components of its signaling pathway are thus potential pharmacotherapies for AUDs.

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Request Reprint E-Mail: ulrike.heberlein@ucsf.edu

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ADOLESCENT ALCOHOL- AND ILLICIT DRUG-USE IN FIRST AND SECOND GENERATION IMMIGRANTS IN SWEDEN

WORKING PAPER No 8 / 2009

In this paper adolescent alcohol- and illicit drug-use among 1st and 2nd generation immigrants from Nordic, non-Nordic European and non-European countries were compared with the Swedish majority population.

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ALCOHOL USE AND SOCIAL INTERACTIONS AMONG ADOLESCENTS

Do peer-effects exist within and/or between the majority population and
immigrants?
WORKING PAPER No 7 / 2009


Are adolescents who attend schools with a high level of alcohol use more
likely to use alcohol themselves? This paper analyzes peer-effects in adolescent alcohol use based on a survey of 13,337 adolescents in Sweden in 2005. The empirical analysis uses multi-level logistic model to handle non-observable heterogeneity between the schools and the results show that attending a school with a high level of alcohol use is a strong predictor of alcohol use for the individual. However, a positive association is only
seen within Swedes and within non-Swedes (1st and 2nd generation immigrants).

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ADOLESCENTS ALCOHOL-USE AND ECONOMIC CONDITIONS

A Multilevel Analysis of Data from a Period with Big Economic Changes

WORKING PAPER No 6 / 2009

This paper examines how the unemployment rate is related to adolescent alcohol use during a time period characterized by big societal changes using repeated cross-sectional adolescent survey data from a Swedish region, collected in 1988, 1991, 1995, 1998, 2002 and 2005. Individual level alcohol use is connected to local level unemployment rate to estimate the relationship using multilevel modeling.

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The recovery revolution: news from the front

William White, Senior Research Consultant, Chestnut Health Systems, Bloomington, USA

This presentation will briefly review the history and status of this movement in the United States to transform systems of care for individuals and families wounded by alcohol and other drug problems.

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View powerpoint presentation online

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Associations Among GABRG1, Level of Response to Alcohol, and Drinking Behaviors

Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research Published Online: 4 May 2009

Analyses revealed that a SNP of the GABRG1 gene (rs1497571) was associated with level of response to alcohol and drinking patterns in this subclinical sample. Follow-up mediational analyses were also conducted to examine putative mechanisms underlying these associations.

These findings replicate and extend recent research suggesting that genetic variation at the GABRG1 locus may underlie the expression of alcohol phenotypes, including level of response to alcohol.

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Request Reprint E-Mail: lararay@psych.ucla.edu

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Minimum drinking age laws and infant health outcomes

Journal of Health Economics Volume 28, Issue 3, May 2009, Pages 737-747

The evidence suggests that lenient drinking laws generate poor birth outcomes in part because they increase the number of unplanned pregnancies.

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Request Reprint E-Mail: Tara.Watson@williams.edu

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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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Request Reprint E-Mail: fm@maelconsulting.com
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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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Request Reprint E-Mail: kelleps@auburn.edu

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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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Request Reprint E-Mail: seena.fazel@psych.ox.ac.uk
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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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Request Reprint E-Mail: r.patton@iop.kcl.ac.uk

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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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Request Reprint E-Mail: kiefer@uke.uni-hamburg.de

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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Request Reprint E-Mail: rshults@cdc.gov

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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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Request Reprint E-Mail: mjmiguez1163@bellsouth.net

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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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Request Reprint E-Mail: lorenzoleggio@hotmail.com

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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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Request Reprint E-Mail: ekuntsche@sfa-ispa.ch
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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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Request Reprint E-Mail: rich.feinn@yale.edu

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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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Request Reprint E-Mail: mschuckit@ucsd.edu

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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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Request Reprint E-Mail: rmoos@stanford

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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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