AMERSA, Author at AMERSA

The Authors’ Own Words: An Exploration of Alcohol Use Severity and Route of Drug Administration Among Persons That Use Heroin and Cocaine

Apr 24, 2020 by AMERSA

The Authors’ Own Words: We ask authors to describe their impressions regarding the implications of their accepted work, how their findings will change practice, and what is noteworthy about the work.

An Exploration of Alcohol Use Severity and Route of Drug Administration Among Persons That Use Heroin and Cocaine

Michael Scherer, PhD; Paul T. Harrell, PhD; Rebecca C. Trenz, PhD; Sarah Canham, PhD; & William W. Latimer, PhD, MPH

Volume 37, 2016 – Issue 2

“In the current study, users of heroin and/or cocaine which also reported problematic use of alcohol were significantly less likely to inject and more likely to snort/sniff their substance of choice. The use of alcohol at problematic levels seems to impede injection as a route of administration, and may promote less harmful non-injection routes of administration. The order in which this occurs is not known through the interpretation of study findings, but these findings may provide useful information for interventionists. Though the ideal would be to reduce or extinguish heroin and/or cocaine use, such a goal may not always be feasible or practical. In such cases, protocols that allow persons that use heroin and/or cocaine to move from high-risk practices such as IDU to less risky NIDU ROAs while at the same time focusing on reductions in alcohol use may prove to be useful among this difficult to treat population of persons that use illicit drugs. Future research should be designed to specifically address the misuse of alcohol among persons that use heroin and/or cocaine transitioning from IDU to NIDU and how these individuals may fit into treatment protocols.”

The Authors’ Own Words: Brief intervention for daily marijuana users identified by screening in primary care: a subgroup analysis of the ASPIRE randomized clinical trial

Apr 23, 2020 by AMERSA

Brief intervention for daily marijuana users identified by screening in primary care: a subgroup analysis of the ASPIRE randomized clinical trial

Daniel Fuster, MD, PhD; Debbie M. Cheng, ScD; Na Wang, MA; Judith A. Bernstein, PhD; Tibor P. Palfai, PhD; Daniel P. Alford, MD, MPH; Jeffrey H. Samet, MD, MA, MPH; & Richard Saitz, MD, MPH

Volume 37, 2016 – Issue 2

“Marijuana is the illicit drug most commonly used by patients in primary care identified by screening, but the efficacy of brief intervention to decrease marijuana use is not known. In this study, we assessed the impact of two brief interventions on marijuana use among daily/ or almost daily marijuana users in primary care. The two brief interventions, a Brief Negotiated Interview lasting 10-15 minute structured interview, and an Adaptation of Motivational Interviewing (MOTIV), that lasted for 30-45 minute intervention, were compared to no intervention. Our results suggest that the two forms of brief intervention have no apparent impact on marijuana use or drug-related problems among primary care patients with frequent marijuana use identified by screening. Therefore, efforts to address marijuana use in non-treatment seeking individuals identified by universal screening should shift from screening and one-time brief intervention to other more intensive interventions.”

Substance Abuse journal, Volume 41, Issue 2 is out NOW!

Apr 23, 2020 by AMERSA

Our #newest issue is out now and available to read now! This issue is full of the latest #SUD research out there. Make sure to read our #special editorial around #OUD during this #COVID19 pandemic.

Volume 41, Issue 2

Opioid use disorder and the COVID 19 pandemic: A call to sustain regulatory easements and further expand access to treatment

Traci C. Green PhD, MSc, Jeffrey Bratberg PharmD, FAPhA & Deborah S. Finnell DNS, RN, CARN-AP, FAAN

An ethical analysis of medication treatment for opioid use disorder (MOUD) for persons who are incarcerated

Emma R. Brezel MBE, Tia Powell MD & Aaron D. Fox MD, MS

Pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic of the cognitive enhancer modafinil: Relevant clinical and forensic aspects

Ana Sousa MSc & Ricardo Jorge Dinis-Oliveira PhD

Implementing group visits for opioid use disorder: A case series

Randi Sokol MD, MPH, MMedEd, Mark Albanese MD, Chiara Albanese BA, Gerard Coste MD, Ellie Grossman MD, MPH, Diana Morrill BA, David Roll MD, Amy Sobieszczyk LICSW & Zev Schuman-Olivier MD

Consideration of opioid agonist treatment in a pregnant adolescent: A case report and literature review

Meredith Spada MD, Julie Kmiec DO, Jody B. Glance MD & Priya Gopalan MD

Text messaging promoting physician-led brief intervention tobacco cessation: A before-and-after study among physicians in three tertiary hospitals in Nigeria

Oluwakemi Odukoya MPH, Babalola Faseru MPH, Nkolika Uguru MPH, Mustapha Jamda MPH, Olanrewaju Onigbogi MPH, Oluwafunmilola James MSc, Scott Leischow PhD & Olalekan Ayo-Yusuf PhD

Severity of DSM-5 cannabis use disorders in a nationally representative sample of sexual minorities

Carol J. Boyd PhD, MSN, FAAN, Philip T. Veliz PhD & Sean Esteban McCabe PhD

Health-related material needs and substance use among emergency department patients

Evan Gerber BS, Lillian Gelberg MD, MSPH, John Rotrosen MD, Donna CastelblancoMBE, Tod Mijanovich PhD & Kelly M. Doran MD, MHS

Behavioral economic demand for alcohol among young adults who engage in simultaneous alcohol and marijuana use

Jason J. Ramirez PhD, Jennifer M. Cadigan PhD & Christine M. Lee PhD

Beneficial opioid management strategies: A review of the evidence for the use of opioid treatment agreements

Tuesday M. McAuliffe Staehler PharmD/MPH Candidate & Laura C. Palombi PharmD, MPH, MAT

The relationship between patient-centered care and outcomes in specialist drug and alcohol treatment: A systematic literature review

Esther L. Davis PhD (Clin Psyc), Peter J. Kelly PhD (Clin Psyc), Frank P. Deane PhD, Amanda L. Baker PhD, Mark Buckingham PostGradDip (Hlth M), Tayla Degan BPsyc (Hons) & Sarah Adams MCP

Racial inequities in U.S. naloxone prescriptions

Erin Fanning Madden PHD MPH & Fares Qeadan PHD MS

Concerns that an opioid antidote could “make things worse”: Profiles of risk compensation beliefs using the Naloxone-Related Risk Compensation Beliefs (NaRRC-B) scale

Rachel P. Winograd PhD, Kim B. Werner PhD, Lauren Green BS, Sarah Phillips MA, Jenny Armbruster MEd & Robert Paul PhD

Changes in voluntary admission and restraint use after a comprehensive tobacco-free policy in inpatient psychiatric health facilities

Annaka Scheeres BS, Regina Xhezo MS, PMP, Rose Julius DO, MPH, Ryan CoffmanMPH, CHES, CTTS-M, Jarma Frisby MS, Luise Weber MPH, BSN, Jessica Streeter MA, Frank Leone MD, MS, Cheryl Bettigole MD, MPH & Hannah Lawman PhD

Adoption of the 275-patient buprenorphine treatment waiver for treating opioid use disorder: A state-level longitudinal analysis

Hannah K. Knudsen PhD, Lewei (Allison) Lin MD & Michelle R. Lofwall MD

The Authors’ Own Words: Prevalence of Marijuana and Other Substance Use Before and After Washington State’s Change from Legal Medical Marijuana to Legal Medical and Non-Medical Marijuana: Cohort Comparisons in a Sample of Adolescents

Apr 23, 2020 by AMERSA

Prevalence of Marijuana and Other Substance Use Before and After Washington State’s Change from Legal Medical Marijuana to Legal Medical and Non-Medical Marijuana: Cohort Comparisons in a Sample of Adolescents

W. Alex Mason, PhD; Charles B. Fleming, MA; Jay L. Ringle, MA; Koren Hanson, MA; Thomas J. Gross, PhD; & Kevin P. Haggerty, MSW, PhD

Volume 37, 2016 – Issue 2

“This study is one of the first to explore the degree to which the transition from legal medical marijuana to legal medical and non-medical marijuana in Washington State might influence adolescent marijuana and other substance use. Results providing some support for marijuana-for-cigarettes and marijuana-for-alcohol substitution effects shortly after the non-medical marijuana law was enacted suggest that continued monitoring of marijuana as well as other substance use among adolescents is needed as legalization takes root. The analytic model used in the current study may be useful for further tests in longer-term studies with larger samples.”

The Authors’ Own Words: Exploring the Severity of Dependence Scale (SDS) as a Possible Measure of Nicotine Dependence

Apr 22, 2020 by AMERSA

Exploring the Severity of Dependence Scale (SDS) as a Possible Measure of Nicotine Dependence

Melissa Mercincavage, PhD; Joshua M. Smyth, PhD; Steven A. Branstetter, PhD; & Delwyn Catley, PhD

Volume 37, 2016 – Issue 2

“This manuscript describes a study examining associations between the time to first cigarette (TTFC), a single-item measure of physical nicotine dependence, and the Severity of Dependence Scale (SDS), a brief measure of psychological dependence not yet extensively applied to nicotine research, among a sample of smokers participating in the baseline session of a cessation trial. Relations of TTFC and SDS with previous quitting behaviors and cognitive-affective variables were also examined. The current findings offer utility to clinicians in demonstrating that the SDS, in its typically administered 5-question format, is not appropriate for diagnosing nicotine dependence among smokers. Because the SDS appears to tap into non-physical components of dependence (e.g., loss of control) that relate to quitting motivation and affect, assessing nicotine dependence using only the SDS may fail to capture physical dependence and, further, may not reflect the same domains of addiction the SDS assesses in other drugs of abuse. It is possible that the three-item factor subscale assessing psychological dependence among smokers may be of utility to the cessation workforce if this factor is predictive of clinical outcomes such as cessation and relapse; however, this needs to be further explored. Nonetheless, using three SDS items in addition to TTFC may offer utility over using TTFC alone.”