Aims

To support the free and open dissemination of research findings and information on alcoholism and alcohol-related problems. To encourage open access to peer-reviewed articles free for all to view.

For full versions of posted research articles readers are encouraged to email requests for "electronic reprints" (text file, PDF files, FAX copies) to the corresponding or lead author, who is highlighted in the posting.

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Saturday, July 18, 2009

Alcohol Consumption and Risk of Cardiovascular Disease and Death in Women. Potential Mediating Mechanisms
Circulation. 2009 Published online before print July 13, 2009

Although an association between moderate alcohol consumption and decreased cardiovascular disease (CVD) and death has been reported, limited data are available on potential mediating mechanisms. We examined the association between alcohol and CVD and death in 26 399 women and estimated the proportion of reduced risk of CVD/death explained by a series of intermediate factors.

These data suggest that alcohol effects on lipids and insulin sensitivity may account for a large proportion of the lower risk of CVD/death observed with moderate drinking under the assumption that the alcohol-CVD association is causal.




Request Reprint E-Mail: ldjousse@rics.bwh.harvard.edu

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Using propensity scores to adjust for selection bias when assessing the effectiveness of Alcoholics Anonymous in observational studies
Drug and Alcohol Dependence Volume 104, Issues 1-2, 1 September 2009, Pages 56-64

The effectiveness of Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) is difficult to establish. Observational studies consistently find strong dose–response relationships between AA meeting attendance and abstinence, and the only experimental studies favoring AA have been of 12-step facilitation treatment rather than of AA per se. Pending future randomized trials, this paper uses propensity score (PS) method to address the selection bias that potentially confounds the effect of AA in observational studies.

These results confirm the robustness of AA effectiveness overall, because the results for higher abstinence associated with AA attendance following propensity score adjustment remained significant, and the reduction in the magnitude of AA's effect was moderate. However, the effect modification by propensity scores in both PS stratification and PS matching approaches seems to suggest that AA may be most helpful, or matter more, for those with a lower propensity to attend AA. Conversely, for those with a high propensity to go to AA (operationalized as higher motivation, greater problem severity, more prior AA and treatment exposure, etc.), attending AA may not make as much of a difference.

It will be important that future studies replicate our results, as this is the first paper to use propensity score adjustment in this context.

Read Full Abstract

Request Reprint E-Mail: yye@arg.org

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Alcohol, Other Drugs, and Health: Current Evidence
Current Issue: May–June 2009





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ICAP Periodic Review on Drinking and Culture Issue 2

We are pleased to announce the publication of a new issue of the ICAP Periodic Review on Drinking and Culture. This issue presents abstracts of journal articles published between 2007 and 2009 and covers 11 central, eastern, and southern European countries and 8 languages.

The featured abstracts focus on the following topics: alcohol and pregnancy, alcohol and the workplace, drinking and violence, drinking patterns in adult population, extreme/”binge” drinking, motivations and expectancies, road safety, and drinking among young people.

Read Full Issue (PDF)

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Brits abroad targeted with sensible drinking messages

The British Foreign Office have joined the list of organisations promoting sensible drinking messages to boozing Britons. . . . . . .


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Alcohol industry launches £100 million repsonsible drinking campaign

A collaboration of more than 45 drinks companies and retailers have funded a 5 year responsible drinking campaign costing £100 million. The 'campaign for smarter drinking' will see the industry funded Drinkaware trust lead on the campaign that will "offer practical tips to make sure good times don’t go bad, such as reminders to drink water or soft drinks, eat food and plan to get home safely." The campaign claims it will take a social marketing approach to "use outdoor advertising, signs, drink mats in pubs and bars, on-drink and point of sale displays in retailers to deliver its message." . . . . .



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Set Of Genes Contributes To Stress; Possible Drug-Taking Behavior Discovered
ScienceDaily (July 17, 2009)

A Baylor University researcher has found a set of genes that modulates stress responses that could cause some people to take drugs, specifically alcohol consumption.

The study by Dr. Doug Matthews, professor of psychology and neuroscience at Baylor, appeared in the journal Behavior Genetics. . . . . .





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Substance Use Treatment Need and Receipt among Hispanics

Combined 2002 to 2007 data indicate that an annual average of 8.3 percent (2.6 million) of Hispanics aged 12 or older were in need of alcohol treatment in the past year, and 3.4 percent (1.1 million) were in need of illicit drug use treatment.

Among Hispanics, the need for alcohol treatment was highest among Mexicans (9.2 percent), and the need for illicit drug treatment was highest among Puerto Ricans (6.1 percent).

Among those in need of alcohol treatment in the past year, 7.7 percent received it in a specialty facility, and 15.1 percent of those in need of drug treatment received it in a specialty facility.

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Friday, July 17, 2009

Commissioning guidance for alcohol treatment published

The Department of Health has just published its long-awaited guidance, called Signs for improvement – commissioning interventions to reduce alcohol-related harm. . . . . .


Read More


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Consumer Integration: Next Steps to Creating Recovery-Oriented Environments
Free Homelessness Resource Center Webcast

July 23, 2009 at 12:00–1:30 p.m. ET

The second half of this two-part webcast series on consumer integration will feature Laura Prescott, founder and president, Sister Witness International Inc.; Leah Harris, author and national consultant; and Steven Samra, veterans services coordinator, Operation Standdown.

Part one of the webcast highlighted principles of recovery, benefits and common barriers to participation, and potential roles for people who have experienced homelessness.

Part two picks up where we left off, focusing on next steps to creating recovery-oriented environments that support integration. Participants in part two will discuss how to set the stage for integration, create an agency plan, and take concrete steps toward implementation.


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Thursday, July 16, 2009

Psychosocial Distress and Alcohol Use as Factors in Adolescent Sexual Behavior Among Sub-Saharan African Adolescents
Journal of School Health Volume 79 Issue 8, Pages 369 - 379

The results of this study are consistent with those conducted in the United States suggesting that sexual behavior, psychosocial distress, and substance use are interconnected. These findings highlight the need for school health education and health services in sub-Saharan Africa, specifically the efforts to reduce psychosocial distress and prevent substance use in efforts to prevent the spread of human immunodeficiency virus and other sexually transmitted infections.


Request Reprint E-Mail: randy_page@byu.edu

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Raise Alcohol Tax to Finance Prevention Trust Fund, Partnership Urges Congress

Partnership for Prevention is urging chairmen of the three congressional committees crafting the House version of a health care reform bill to raise the federal excise tax on alcoholic beverages and apply those revenues to a special fund to finance prevention and wellness initiatives. . . . . . .




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The effects of energy drinks alone and with alcohol on neuropsychological functioning
Human Psychopharmacology: Clinical and Experimental Published Online: 15 Jul 2009

Participants who consumed the energy drink plus alcohol evidenced significantly lower post-test performance on a global score of neuropsychological status. Specifically, deficits were found in both visuospatial/constructional and language performance scores. While participants who consumed the caffeinated beverage alone trended toward improved attention scores, neuropsychological status did not show meaningful changes from the pre- to post-test

Consumption of an energy drink containing 6% alcohol by volume negatively influenced performance on a global measure of cognitive functioning.


Request Reprint E-Mail: kcurry@ut.edu

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Concurrent cocaine and alcohol use in individuals presenting to an addiction treatment program
Irish Journal of Medical Science Online First July 14, 2009

Cocaine use among the alcohol-dependent population is an increasing problem in the Republic of Ireland, and poses a problem of higher toxicity associated with concurrent cocaine and alcohol use.


Request Reprint E-Mail: johnlyne@mail.com

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Prevalence and neuropsychiatric comorbidities of alcohol use disorders in an elderly Korean population
International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry Published Online: 15 Jul 2009

Problem drinking was common particularly in men and associated with smoking. Social drinking was associated with the lower risks of stroke and depression.


Request Reprint E-Mail: jiwoomd@snu.ac.kr

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Alcohol intoxication and mental health among adolescents – a population review of 8983 young people, 13–19 years in North-Trøndelag, Norway: the Young-HUNT Study
Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Mental Health 2009, 3:18

The aims of this study were to describe alcohol use among Norwegian teenagers and investigate the associations between mental health problems and alcohol intoxications with focus on age and gender.

Gender differences in number of alcohol intoxications were small. There was a close association between both conduct and attention problems and high alcohol consumption in both genders. Girls with symptoms of anxiety and depression reported more frequent alcohol intoxications.


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Commentary] RESEARCH ASSESSMENTS: INSTRUMENTS OF BIAS AND BRIEF INTERVENTIONS OF THE FUTURE?
Addiction Volume 104 Issue 8, Pages 1311 - 1312

The possibility that research assessments themselves have the potential to positively influence drinking behaviour has long been recognized. The earliest research data were retrospective accounts of how helpful research assessments were found to be in treatment cohort studies . The first trials investigated this issue among dependent drinkers within treatment settings and found them unimportant Nonetheless, the phenomenon continued to attract attention within the research community, and subsequent non-randomized treatment trials identified assessment effects which appeared substantial and important to further study . Qualitative process studies within large multi-centre treatment trials provided data attesting to the influence of research assessments, indicating that it was an important component of the treatment experience with impact on actual behaviour change . This research interest led to a more recent randomized trial of assessment in the context of treatment which detected smaller effects, providing greater certainty about the nature of the phenomenon and the magnitude of effects that may be expected . . . . . . .

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Reactivity to alcohol assessment measures: an experimental test
Addiction Volume 104 Issue 8, Pages 1305 - 1310

We found a significant effect of assessment on measures of risky drinking and risk reduction behaviors, but not on overall volume of drinking. Specifically, at 12 months, participants who had previously completed drinking assessments had a lower peak blood alcohol concentration (BAC) (d = −0.373), were more likely to report a low score on the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT; odds ratio = 2.55) and tended to use more strategies to moderate their alcohol consumption (d = 0.352). Risk reduction behaviors that were affected tended to be those that limited alcohol consumption, rather than those that minimized consequences.

These results may have implications for the development of brief interventions.


Request Reprint E-Mail: scott.walters@utsouthwestern.edu

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Early weaning and alcohol disorders in offspring: biological effect, mediating factors or residual confounding?
Addiction Volume 104 Issue 8, Pages 1324 - 1332

This study confirms a small but robust association between early weaning and increased risk of alcohol use disorders.


Request Reprint E-Mail: r.alati@sph.uq.edu.au

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[Commentary] LOW-RISK DRINKING LIMITS: ABSOLUTE VERSUS RELATIVE RISK
Addiction Volume 104 Issue 8, Pages 1303 - 1304

The paper by Moos et al raises important questions about the purpose and definition of low-risk drinking guidelines—questions that extend beyond the elderly population examined in their manuscript to the broader rationale for gender- and/or age-specific drinking limits. Moos et al. note that older men experience at least as many problems as older women at comparable levels of consumption and conclude that 'guidelines for men should not be set higher than those for women'. This suggests that recommended drinking limits should be keyed towards absolute levels of risk, but I would argue that drinking guidelines should reflect relative levels of risk, i.e. the excess risk of adverse outcomes associated with given levels of consumption. . . . . .

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