Substance Abuse News and Research

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Individuals get involved in alcohol or drug related accidents during summer holidays

As the days grow longer and hotter, some chemical dependency professionals have their own name for summer: substance abuse season, because that's when individuals who abuse or are addicted to alcohol, prescription medications and drugs get involved in alcohol or drug related accidents during the summer holidays.

24 Jun 2010

Secretary of Labor issues statement on mental health and substance abuse benefits, services

We are very pleased that the court ruled in favor of the U.S. Departments of Labor, Treasury, and Health and Human Services, thereby allowing us to continue a regulatory process designed to benefit vulnerable members of our society. It will make mental health benefits more affordable by putting the cost on par with other health benefits.

24 Jun 2010

Federal funds available to support specialized training curriculum on Mental Health Procedures Act

Approximately $500,000 is available in federal American Recovery and Reinvestment Act funds to support a specialized training curriculum on the Mental Health Procedures Act of 1976 for judges, law enforcement, psychologists, social workers and other professionals in the criminal justice system.

21 Jun 2010

Study finds anxiety/panic disorder as most-disabling psychiatric disorder associated with TS

An assessment of patients with adult Tourette syndrome (TS) to identify clinical factors that contribute to psychosocial and occupational disabilities resulting from the vocal or motor tics that define TS found that anxiety/panic disorder may be the most disabling psychiatric condition associated with the disorder.

18 Jun 2010

Proportion of substance abuse treatment admissions involving older Americans doubles: SAMHSA

A new study reveals that between 1992 and 2008 the proportion of substance abuse treatment admissions involving older Americans (aged 50 and older) nearly doubled -- from 6.6 percent of all admissions in 1992 to 12.2 percent in 2008. The study, sponsored by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, also shows a sharp rise during this period in the proportion of older Americans admissions related to illicit drug abuse -- even though alcohol abuse is still the leading cause for admissions involving this age group.

17 Jun 2010

SOA provides clarity regarding law's consequences on existing health insurance plans, benefits

With the approaching national implementation of The Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act on July 1, 2010, members of the Society of Actuaries are providing clarity regarding the law's potential unintended consequences on consumers' existing health insurance plans and benefits. While the law is intended to provide non-discriminatory mental health coverage, members of the SOA are helping consumers and large and small employers understand what effects the law will have on current health plan offerings, and what individuals can do to help avoid higher out-of-pocket costs.

16 Jun 2010

Robert Zucker to receive RSA Distinguished Researcher Award

Robert Zucker, Ph.D., director of the University of Michigan Addiction Research Center, and the Substance Abuse Section in the Department of Psychiatry, has been named recipient of the 31st annual Research Society on Alcoholism Distinguished Researcher Award. The award is given to an individual whose research has made significant contributions to the understanding of alcohol abuse and alcoholism, and whose body of work demonstrates leadership in the field.

15 Jun 2010

Study shows NAT programs increase HIV detection yield by 23%

Community-based HIV testing programs generally use only HIV antibody testing, but nucleic acid testing can detect the presence of HIV earlier. Researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine studied more than 3,000 patients who sought HIV testing in community-based clinics in or near San Diego to examine the yield of testing with a rapid test plus NAT and to see whether patients would be willing to access their results by phone or computer.

15 Jun 2010

Adolescent boys who attempt suicide more likely to be aggressive toward partners

Young men who attempt suicide before age 18 are much more likely as adults to be aggressive toward their girlfriends or wives, including hitting and injuring their partners, according to a new study.

14 Jun 2010

New report provides state-by-state analyses of substance abuse, mental illness patterns

A new report providing state-by-state analyses of substance abuse and mental illness patterns reveals that despite wide variations among the states in the types and levels of behavioral health problems they experience -- every state suffers from these problems. For example, among those aged 12 and older, Iowa had less than one third the current illicit drug use rate of Rhode Island (4.1 percent vs. 13.3 percent) - yet Iowa's population aged 12 and older was among the group of states with the nation's highest levels of people participating in binge drinking in the past month (27.2 percent).

14 Jun 2010

Homeless Brisbane population at risk of dying early: survey

A recent survey has shown that more than 50 percent of Brisbane’s homeless community is at a higher risk of early deaths. The survey was conducted by interviewing at least 231 people who live on Brisbane's streets, using an index to determine their risk of dying or mortality risk.

14 Jun 2010

Children who attend youth clubs are less likely to engage in problem behaviors

When children belong to a youth club, they gain a stronger sense of who they are as a person, an Ohio State University study has revealed.

11 Jun 2010

Research may lead to better treatments for depression and substance abuse

In what has been hailed as a breakthrough, scientists from Columbia University Medical Center and Weill Cornell Medical College have outlined the molecular mechanism of membrane transport. The research shows how a protein transforms its shape to transport substances across the cell membrane in order to regulate transmission of the brain's messages across the synaptic gap from one neuron to another.

11 Jun 2010

mPFC dysfunction contributes to compulsive seeking of sexual behavior

Sex "addiction" is a concept that has had particularly high visibility recently with the publicity associated with Tiger Woods. Persons with addictive or compulsive disorders frequently display an inability to inhibit behaviors once they become maladaptive, despite adverse consequences of their behavior. The medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) is a brain region involved in decision-making and behavioral flexibility, and it has been identified as a potential mediator of behavioral inhibition.

11 Jun 2010

Children and teens with moderate to severe OSA have lower academic grades: Research

The average academic grades of children and teens with moderate to severe obstructive sleep apnea are worse than the grades of students who have no sleep-disordered breathing, according to a research abstract that will be presented Tuesday, June 8, 2010, in San Antonio, Texas, at SLEEP 2010, the 24th annual meeting of the Associated Professional Sleep Societies LLC.

8 Jun 2010

Burden of substance abuse casts tragic shadow on the lives of many young people: Report

On an average day, 508,000 adolescents aged 12-17 in the United States drink alcohol; 641,000 use illicit drugs; and more than 1 million smoke cigarettes, according to a national survey sponsored by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration.

5 Jun 2010

SAMHSA establishes Regional Office in Region VI in Dallas, Texas

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, like others in the health care arena, has learned that integrating services, providing joint training and technical assistance, and collaborating across service sectors hold the most promise for effectively meeting health care needs for all Americans. These linkages are best achieved through relationship building activities - something that is difficult to accomplish from afar.

4 Jun 2010

Over 90% of psychiatric patients treated in community hospitals are cared for in specialty units: Study

Over 90 percent of psychiatric patients who received treatment in community hospitals were cared for in hospital-based psychiatric specialty units, according to a study sponsored by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration and the U.S. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality and published today in Psychiatric Services.

3 Jun 2010

Intimate partners can have important influence on another's substance use: Study

A new study of young people in the two years after high school finds that those in romantic relationships are less likely than their peers to report heavy drinking and marijuana use.

2 Jun 2010

Study finds largest declines in impulsivity and decreases in alcohol consumption among 18-to-25-year olds

Personality traits associated with impulsivity normally decrease during emerging and young adulthood, and these decreases are associated with reduced substance use. A new study of "trajectories" of impulsivity and their association with problem alcohol use has found that the 18-to-25-years-of-age group exhibited the largest declines in impulsivity as well as the sharpest decreases in alcohol consumption.

1 Jun 2010

Substance Abuse News and Research

Individuals get involved in alcohol or drug related accidents during summer holidays

Secretary of Labor issues statement on mental health and substance abuse benefits, services

Federal funds available to support specialized training curriculum on Mental Health Procedures Act

Study finds anxiety/panic disorder as most-disabling psychiatric disorder associated with TS

Proportion of substance abuse treatment admissions involving older Americans doubles: SAMHSA

SOA provides clarity regarding law's consequences on existing health insurance plans, benefits

Robert Zucker to receive RSA Distinguished Researcher Award

Study shows NAT programs increase HIV detection yield by 23%

Adolescent boys who attempt suicide more likely to be aggressive toward partners

New report provides state-by-state analyses of substance abuse, mental illness patterns

Homeless Brisbane population at risk of dying early: survey

Children who attend youth clubs are less likely to engage in problem behaviors

Research may lead to better treatments for depression and substance abuse

mPFC dysfunction contributes to compulsive seeking of sexual behavior

Children and teens with moderate to severe OSA have lower academic grades: Research

Burden of substance abuse casts tragic shadow on the lives of many young people: Report

SAMHSA establishes Regional Office in Region VI in Dallas, Texas

Over 90% of psychiatric patients treated in community hospitals are cared for in specialty units: Study

Intimate partners can have important influence on another's substance use: Study

Study finds largest declines in impulsivity and decreases in alcohol consumption among 18-to-25-year olds

Achieving and maintaining ISO 27001 and BS 10012 certifications

Expanding research and clinical options for children with cancer

Examining how pain could play a direct protective role in the gut

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