Tag: substance abuse

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Unmedicated Autism Associated With Substance Abuse

On By ModernMedia

A Taiwanese study has shown that individuals diagnosed with untreated autism spectrum disorder (ASD) have higher rates of substance abuse compared to those on treatment.

The researchers used inpatient and outpatient data of 6 599 individuals with ASD who had at least 3 outpatients visits for ASD, drawn from the Taiwan National Health Insurance Research Database. They found an increased risk of substance use disorder (SUD) among those who were not receiving medication for ASD (adjusted hazard ratio 2.33, 95% CI 1.89-2.87). The risk for drug abuse was three times higher, and the risk for alcohol abuse was two times higher.

Additionally, those with comorbid SUD had over a three times greater risk of death over a follow-up period of 8.1 years.Those taking psychotropic agents had a 40% reduction for SUD risk when taking one agent, and a 63% reduction with a multiagent.

There were several comorbidities of psychiatric disorders seen in patients with ASD, such as intellectual disability, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, tic disorder, epilepsy, obsessive-compulsive disorder, mood disorder, anxiety disorder, and impulse control disorder. However, individuals with ASD had a higher risk of SUD even compared with matched controls with the same comorbidities. SUD risk was highest with certain comorbidities; untreated ASD with comorbid tic disorder was 6 times higher; with a comorbid impulse control disorder, it was five times higher.

The researchers stated that these are critical findings, but of limited use due to the “umbrella term” of substance use disorder, and further studies will be needed to examine the specific types of drug use amongst individuals with ASD. Future research could investigate whether non-pharmaceutical treatments such as behavioural therapy had the same effect.They conclude that screening  individuals with ASD for SUD is important, given the findings of the study.

Source: MedPage Today

Journal information: Huang J, Yang F, Chien W, et al. Risk of Substance Use Disorder and Its Associations With Comorbidities and Psychotropic Agents in Patients With Autism. JAMA Pediatr. Published online January 04, 2021. doi:10.1001/jamapediatrics.2020.5371

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Ask Patients about Any Cannabis Use Frankly

On By ModernMedia

With legalisation and increasingly widespread use of cannabis, healthcare providers should be as open-minded about cannabis use in their patients as possible

Marian Wilson, registered nurse and associate professor at the Washington State University College of Nursing, argues in a recent paper that enquiring about it like they would alcohol or tobacco is necessary to obtain adequate patient histories and build trust.

Many studies have indicated that patients are using it to treat pain in much the same way they do opioids. Since they are using it in this way, they need to be asked about it for pain management. Since patients are reluctant to disclose this information with clinicians, there is currently a lack of information on prevalence and usage habits.

“We want this paper to guide providers in how they can start opening up this conversation and normalising it,” Wilson said. “Central to patient-centred conversations is understanding the top priorities of patients. Researchers have suggested that clinicians should ask ‘What matters to you?’ as well as ‘What is the matter?'”

Source: News-Medical.Net

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Il-10 Found to be Involved in Alcoholism

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Researchers have discovered that the anti-inflammatory IL-10 plays a direct role in alcoholism. Neurological research into addiction and alcohol has focused on the amygdala, which plays a key role in drives, emotions and behaviours.

Alcoholism is a growing problem in need of effective treatment. Interleukin 10 (IL-10) is an immune protein that has strong anti-inflammatory properties and is known to protect the brain from inflammation resulting from disease or injury.

In the brains of mice which chronically used alcohol, the amount of IL-10 was lowered in the amygdala and did not correctly signal neurons, and so was partly responsible for alcohol consumption behaviours. This was despite the overall higher level of IL-10 throughout the brains of chronic alcohol using mice.

“We found that chronic alcohol exposure compromises brain immune cells, which are important for maintaining healthy neurons,” said first author of the study Reesha Patel, PhD. “The resulting damage fuels anxiety and alcohol drinking that may lead to alcohol use disorder.”

The researchers counteracted the decrease of IL-10 amounts and signalling in mice, and the mice’s excessive alcohol use declined, and a decrease in anxiety was also noted.

Marisa Roberto, PhD, a professor in Scripps Research’s Department of Molecular Medicine, led the research. She said, “We’ve shown that inflammatory immune responses in the brain are very much at play in the development and maintenance of alcohol use disorder. But perhaps more importantly, we provided a new framework for therapeutic intervention, pointing to anti-inflammatory mechanisms.”

Source: Medical Xpress

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Assisted Hyperventilation: A New Way to Treat Alcohol Intoxication

On By ModernMedia

Alcohol impacts just about every bodily function, from brain function and circulation to nail growth. At high levels, alcohol intoxication can damage organs and lead to death.

According to the World Health Organization, approximately three million people around the world die due to alcohol intoxication each year. 

About 90% of alcohol is processed through the liver at a constant rate, and the only way to speed this up is dialysis. Thus, the only treatment for alcohol intoxication thus far has been to supply oxygen and intravenous fluids, and medications for cardiac support as needed.

The new approach simply adds the lungs to the process: simply by hyperventilating, three times more alcohol could be excreted via the lungs than the liver. 

“But you can’t just hyperventilate, because in a minute or two you would become light-headed and pass out,” explained Dr Fisher, anaesthesiologist and senior scientist at the Toronto General Hospital Research Institute (TGHRI). The decrease in CO2 in the bloodstream is what causes the sensation of light-headedness, as well as tingling in the extremities.

To get around this, the researchers created a simple device which returns the same amount of carbon dioxide to the lungs as was exhaled, no matter the volume of air.

“It’s [a] very basic, low-tech device that could be made anywhere in the world: no electronics, no computers or filters are required. It’s almost inexplicable why we didn’t try this decades ago,” said Dr. Fisher.

Source: Medical Xpress