Addiction medicine
Article Abstract:
Economic factors, gender, biochemistry and mechanisms of nicotine addiction are areas of addiction medicine that are receiving increased interest in 1993. Studies of gender and its relationship to alcoholism may lead to treatment programs that better address individual needs. The possibility of a genetic predisposition to addiction is being explored in relation to alcoholism and nicotine addiction. Opioid antagonists such as naltrexone show promise as drugs that can reduce the craving for alcohol. Other studies indicate that psychological intervention is an important component of methadone maintenance programs. The spread of tuberculosis among HIV-positive drug users is an area of concern for both public health and addiction specialists. Currently, many drug users are uninsured and have difficulty obtaining health care. Whether their care would be covered under a managed competition scheme remains to be seen.
Publication Name: JAMA, The Journal of the American Medical Association
Subject: Health
ISSN: 0098-7484
Year: 1993
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Addiction medicine
Article Abstract:
The genetic link to alcoholism, the interaction of substance abuse and other psychiatric problems, and effective treatment strategies for drug addiction are the main areas for future research for the new subspecialty of addiction psychiatry. The genetic link for alcoholism remains controversial. Several genes and environmental factors may be responsible for alcoholism. Patients with anxiety may drink to rid themselves of their symptoms. Panic disorders associated with alcoholism may be caused by improper function of an enzyme system which exerts opium like effects. To combat drug use in high risk populations and prevent AIDS transmission, studies should examine demographics, cultural patterns of drug use and sexual behavior in intravenous drug users. Addiction psychiatry became a formally recognized subspecialty of the American Board of Medical Specialists in 1992.
Publication Name: JAMA, The Journal of the American Medical Association
Subject: Health
ISSN: 0098-7484
Year: 1992
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Addiction medicine
Article Abstract:
The FDA has approved naltrexone to treat alcohol dependence. The drug, which reduces alcohol craving, has been found to decrease relapse, but has been effective only in treatment facilities. Benzodiazepines are the standard therapy for alcohol addiction. Nicotine patches have been effective in smoking cessation. Of 5,098 patients, 27% abstained from smoking by using the patch up to eight weeks compared to 13% using a placebo patch. Auxiliary counseling may double quitting rates. Depression and alcoholism studies suggest that subjects who did not use alcohol recovered twice as quickly from depression as those who abused alcohol. The latest edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders includes modifications in the diagnoses for substance abuse and dependence.
Publication Name: JAMA, The Journal of the American Medical Association
Subject: Health
ISSN: 0098-7484
Year: 1995
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