Prevalence of Concomitant Use of Alcohol and Sedative-Hypnotic Drugs in Middle and Older Aged Persons: A Systematic Review (February).
Prevalence of Concomitant Use of Alcohol and Sedative-Hypnotic Drugs in Middle and Older Aged Persons: A Systematic Review (February).
Filed under: Addiction Rehab
Ann Pharmacother. 2013 Jan 29;
Ilomäki J, Paljärvi T, Korhonen MJ, Enlund H, Alderman CP, Kauhanen J, Bell JS
OBJECTIVE:To systematically review the prevalence of concomitant alcohol and sedative-hypnotic use among middle-aged and older persons.DATA SOURCES:A bibliographic search of English-language literature was performed using MEDLINE, EMBASE, and PsycINFO (January 1990-August 2012). The reference lists of all included articles were screened for additional relevant articles not identified by any of the bibliographic searches.STUDY SELECTION AND DATA EXTRACTION:Population-based studies in which the mean age of participants was 40 years or older were included. For a study to be included in the review, alcohol use had to be reported in terms of the quantity or frequency consumed. Data from included articles were extracted using a standardized data extraction tool.DATA SYNTHESIS:Five population-based studies conducted in North America, 10 in Europe, and 1 in Australia were included in the review. Up to 88% of men and 79% of women who used sedative-hypnotics also consumed alcohol. Up to 28% of those who consumed alcohol were concomitant users of sedative-hypnotics. Alcohol was consumed at higher levels among middle-aged than older persons. Risky drinking (eg, binge drinking, heavy drinking) was more prevalent among middle-aged than older persons. In contrast, sedative-hypnotic use was more prevalent among older persons.CONCLUSIONS:Our review identified a higher prevalence of alcohol consumption among middle-aged than older persons. However, middle-aged persons may experience harm from alcohol/sedative-hypnotic drug interactions due to risky drinking behavior. Despite lower levels of alcohol consumption, older persons may be more susceptible to addictive central nervous system effects than younger persons because of physiologic changes in psychotropic drug and alcohol metabolism. Clinicians should consider patients’ alcohol consumption patterns before prescribing sedative-hypnotic drugs.
HubMed – addiction
Interactive effects of morphine and dopaminergic compounds on spatial working memory in rhesus monkeys.
Filed under: Addiction Rehab
Neurosci Bull. 2013 Feb; 29(1): 37-46
Wang JH, Rizak JD, Chen YM, Li L, Hu XT, Ma YY
Opiates and dopamine (DA) play key roles in learning and memory in humans and animals. Although interactions between these neurotransmitters have been found, their functional roles remain to be fully elucidated, and their dysfunction may contribute to human diseases and addiction. Here we investigated the interactions of morphine and dopaminergic neurotransmitter systems with respect to learning and memory in rhesus monkeys by using the Wisconsin General Test Apparatus (WGTA) delayed-response task. Morphine and DA agonists (SKF-38393, apomorphine and bromocriptine) or DA antagonists (SKF-83566, haloperidol and sulpiride) were co-administered to the monkeys 30 min prior to the task. We found that dose-patterned co-administration of morphine with D1 or D2 antagonists or agonists reversed the impaired spatial working memory induced by morphine or the compounds alone. For example, morphine at 0.01 mg/kg impaired spatial working memory, while morphine (0.01 mg/kg) and apomorphine (0.01 or 0.06 mg/kg) co-treatment ameliorated this effect. Our findings suggest that the interactions between morphine and dopaminergic compounds influence spatial working memory in rhesus monkeys. A better understanding of these interactive relationships may provide insights into human addiction.
HubMed – addiction
Disruption of the GluR2/GAPDH complex protects against ischemia-induced neuronal damage.
Filed under: Addiction Rehab
Neurobiol Dis. 2013 Jan 26;
Zhai D, Li S, Wang M, Chin K, Liu F
BACKGROUND: Excitotoxicity and neuronal death following ischemia involves AMPA (?-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methylisoxazole-4- propionic acid) glutamate receptors. We have recently reported that the GluR2 subunit of AMPA receptors (AMPARs) forms a protein complex with GAPDH (glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase). The GluR2/GAPDH complex co-internalizes upon activation of AMPA receptors. Disruption of the GluR2/GAPDH interaction with an interfering peptide protects cells against AMPAR-mediated excitotoxicity and protects against damage induced by oxygen-glucose deprivation (OGD), an in vitro model of brain ischemia. OBJECTIVE: We sought to test the hypothesis that disruption of the GluR2/GAPDH interaction with an interfering peptide would protect against ischemia-induced neuronal damage in vivo. METHOD: The rat 4-vessel occlusion (4-VO) model was used to investigate whether the GluR2/GAPDH interaction was enhanced in the hippocampus, and if our newly developed interfering peptide could protect against neuronal death in the ischemic brain area. The transient rat Middle Cerebral Artery occlusion (tMCAo) model was used to determine whether our peptide could reduce infarction volume and improve neurological function. Finally, GAPDH lentiviral shRNA was injected into the brain to reduce GAPDH expression one week prior to tMCAo, to confirm the role of GAPDH in the pathophysiology of brain ischemia. RESULTS: The GluR2/GAPDH interaction is upregulated in the hippocampus of rats subjected to transient global ischemia. Administration of an interfering peptide that is able to disrupt the GluR2/GAPDH interaction in vivo protects against ischemia-induced cell death in rat models of global ischemia and decreases the infarct volume as well as neurological score in a rat model focal ischemia. Consistent with these observations, decreased GAPDH expression also protects against ischemia-induced cell death in an animal model of focal ischemia. CONCLUSION: Disruption of the GluR2/GAPDH interaction protects against ischemia-induced neuronal damage in vivo. The GluR2/GAPDH interaction may be a novel therapeutic target for development of treatment for ischemic stroke.
HubMed – addiction
Sleep Quality among Health Care Workers.
Filed under: Addiction Rehab
Arch Iran Med. 2013 Feb; 16(2): 100-3
Ghalichi L, Pournik O, Ghaffari M, Vingard E
Sleep problems are common complaints in health care workers that can affect quality of life and productivity, both in patients and healthy individuals. This study evaluates the prevalence of low sleep quality in health care workers with no health issues or complaints of sleep problems.In this cross-sectional study was conducted on healthy employees of a health care organization in Tehran. The presence of physical and mental health issues and satisfaction from their sleep quality was assessed by means of a self-administered questionnaire. Sleep quality was evaluated by the Persian version of the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI). PSQI scores of 5 or less were considered as good sleep quality. From 925 participants, 56.9% were good sleepers. There was a significant association between poor sleep quality and female sex, divorced, shift-working, and age; it was not associated with education level. Self-rated health (SRH) had a significant positive correlation with sleep quality. Poor sleep quality is common in our study population and associated with a lower SRH. The high prevalence of poor sleep quality in a group of healthy non-complaining employees can be an important early sign of underlying physical or mental health issues. Providing screening and monitoring programs to detect the underlying health conditions and their consequent treatment can promote health and productivity of employees and improve society’s health, both directly and indirectly.
HubMed – addiction
Drug rehab closed for abuse – Drug addiction afflicts many parts of the world and some countries use tougher measures than others in helping people. But one rehab clinic in central Russia has been accused of being too heavy-handed in its approach.
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