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Tag Archives: development

Potential Target Identified For Anti-Craving Medications

Scientists at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) have identified a potential target for the development of anti-craving medications for people with addictions to stimulants such as methamphetamine. The discovery centres on a brain receptor related to the chemical dopamine, which has a complex role in addictive behaviours…

Scientists gleam further insight into alcohol’s effect on brain reward system

Further insight into the effect of alcohol on the brain's reward system has been reported in the journal of Science Translational Medicine. It found alcohol effects the orbitofrontal cortex and results in a release of endorphins, previously only proven in animal studies.

Injecting drug use via femoral vein puncture: Preliminary findings of a point-of-care ultrasound service for opioid-dependent groin injectors in…

Background: Within the UK, injecting in the femoral vein (FV), often called ‘groin injecting’, is a serious cause of risk and harm. This study aimed to use ultrasound scanning as a means to engage groin injectors (GIs), examine their femoral injecting sites and assess their venous health, with the intention of developing improved responses. Methods: Between September 2006 and March 2009, GIs attending a network of community drug treatment centres in South East England were invited to attend an ultrasound ‘health-check’ clinic.

The Soviet doctor and the treatment of drug addiction: "A difficult and most ungracious task"

This paper reviews the development of early Soviet drug treatment approaches by focusing on the struggle for disciplinary power between leading social and mental hygienists and clinical psychiatrists as a defining moment for Soviet drug treatment speciality that became known as “narcology.” From this vantage point, I engage in the examination of the rise and fall of various treatment methods and conceptualizations of addiction in Russian metropolitan centres and look at how they were imported (or not) to other Soviet republics.

Protect children from alcohol misuse: Turning Point call for early intervention

The health and social care provider Turning Point has said alcohol misuse within families is an escalating concern in its new report “Bottling it up: the next generation” . It says early screening and identification of families is needed urgently to prevent the ‘inter-generational cycle’ of alcohol misuse which blights the lives of children and undermines their life chances.

Scripps Research Study Underlines Potential Of Anti-Stress Peptide To Block Alcohol Dependence

New research by scientists at The Scripps Research Institute has underlined the power of an endogenous anti-stress peptide in the brain to prevent and even reverse some of the cellular effects of acute alcohol and alcohol dependence in animal models.

Link Between Cannabinoid Receptor 1 And Dependence On Alcohol And Other Substances

While researchers know that genetic factors play an important role in the development of alcohol dependence (AD), it is challenging to discover which particular genes may be involved. Prior evidence had established that the endogenous cannabinoid system is implicated in AD, with cannabinoid receptor 1 (CNR1) appearing to be the main candidate…

Marijuana Administration Could Prevent Post-Traumatic Stress Symptoms

Cannabinoids (marijuana) administration after experiencing a traumatic event blocks the development of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)-like symptoms in rats, according to a new study conducted at the University of Haifa and published in the journal Neuropsychopharmacology…

Harm reduction for the supply-side: Its time has come

In their article put to rigorous scrutiny the highly relevant question of whether the harm reduction concept could be usefully applied to supply-oriented policies. The question itself is not new.

Returning Veterans’ Alcohol Abuse Addressed In Virtual Reality Study

The spoils of war for returning veterans may include addictions, injury and the constant images of horrific events they witnessed.