Schizophrenia-Associated Violence and Comorbid Substance Abuse
Psychiatry Summary and Comment
The risk for violence is small in the absence of substance abuse.
Is Any Amount of Prenatal Alcohol Consumption Safe?
Psychiatry Summary and Comment
A community-based study and two animal studies show the detrimental effect of prenatal alcohol on development.
By Barbara Geller, MD
May 11, 2009
Covering:
Sayal K et al., Pediatrics 2009 Feb; 123:e289
Youngentob SL and Glendinning JI., Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2009 Mar 31; 106:5359
Kot-Leibovich H and Fainsod A., Dis Model Mech 2009 May/Jun; 2:295
Intensive Efforts Could Improve Smoking-Cessation Rate
General Medicine Summary and Comment
Free
Both outreach programs and the intense cessation programs affect the proportion of smokers who succeed in quitting.
USPSTF Reaffirms Recommendations to Screen for Tobacco Use and to Intervene
General Medicine Clinical Practice Guideline Watch
For adults (and pregnant women especially) the benefits of smoking-cessation counseling far outweigh any harms.
Cocaine-Related Chest Pain: The Year After
Emergency Medicine Summary and Comment
Free
During 1 year after an ED visit for low-risk cocaine-related chest pain, patients had a very low rate of MI but a high rate of repeat ED visits, often for cocaine-related chest pain.
Benefits of a Housing Intervention for Chronically Homeless Alcoholics
Emergency Medicine Summary and Comment
A housing intervention reduced use and costs of healthcare and public services; longer stays in housing were associated with greater benefits.
Pregnant? Quitting Smoking Early Matters
Women's Health Summary and Comment
Free
Rates of preterm delivery and small-for-gestational-age babies were similar in women who quit smoking before 15 weeks’ gestation and in nonsmokers.
By Wendy S. Biggs, MD
April 9, 2009
Covering:
McCowan LME et al., BMJ 2009 Mar 26; 338:b1081
Do You Drink Because You’re Depressed, or Are You Depressed Because You Drink?
Psychiatry Summary and Comment
Sophisticated statistical modeling of longitudinal data suggests that alcohol misuse causes depression more than depression causes alcohol misuse.
By Steven Dubovsky, MD
April 6, 2009
Covering:
Fergusson DM et al., Arch Gen Psychiatry 2009 Mar; 66:260
Modafinil Might Increase Brain Dopamine Levels
Psychiatry Summary and Comment
A PET study supports the hypothesis that this drug acts at the same site as cocaine.
By Barbara Geller, MD
March 30, 2009
Covering:
Volkow ND et al., JAMA 2009 Mar 18; 301:1148
Are Psychiatric Patients Really Dangerous?
Psychiatry Summary and Comment
Free
Substance use and history of violence play important roles in a patient’s risk for violent behavior.
By Steven Dubovsky, MD
March 16, 2009
Covering:
Elbogen EB and Johnson SC., Arch Gen Psychiatry 2009 Feb; 66:152
Hookah Smoking Is Still Smoking
Ten percent of surveyed Arizona high-school students reported ever smoking water-pipe tobacco.
Nature vs. Nurture: What IVF Can Reveal
Psychiatry Summary and Comment
A unique study provides insights into genetic and environmental factors in human development.
By Barbara Geller, MD
March 9, 2009
Covering:
Rice F et al., Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2009 Feb 17; 106:2464
A New Medication for Alcohol Dependence?
Psychiatry Summary and Comment
Prazosin shows promise in a pilot study.
By Deborah Cowley, MD
March 9, 2009
Covering:
Simpson TL et al., Alcohol Clin Exp Res 2009 Feb; 33:255
Genetic Polymorphisms and Alcohol-Related Cancers
General Medicine Summary and Comment
Polymorphisms in alcohol-processing enzymes contribute to cancer risk in moderate or heavy drinkers.
Effect of New Diagnoses on Smoking and Weight Change
General Medicine Summary and Comment
New health problems can be associated with beneficial behavioral changes.
Immediate Listing for Liver Transplantation in Patients with Stage B Cirrhosis
General Medicine Summary and Comment
Five-year survival was not affected by immediate listing.
What Price Smoking Cessation?
General Medicine Summary and Comment
Cash rewards motivated volunteers to quit — but even the well-paid had a long-term failure rate of almost 90%.
By Abigail Zuger, MD
February 11, 2009
Covering:
Volpp KG et al., N Engl J Med 2009 Feb 12; 360:699
HIV and Community-Acquired MRSA
Community-acquired MRSA infections are increasingly common in HIV-positive people. This article summarizes current knowledge regarding risk factors and management of these infections.
QTc Screening When Prescribing Methadone: Practice Guideline
General Medicine Clinical Practice Guideline Watch
About 2% of patients who receive methadone can be expected to exhibit prolonged QT intervals.
Nonmedical Use of Prescription Drugs: The Wrong Kind of Friends-and-Family Plan
Most adolescents who reported nonmedical use of prescription drugs indicated that friends or family members were the source.
How Safe Is Ecstasy in Low Doses?
Neurology Summary and Comment
An imaging study finds evidence of brain damage in new users, compared with their own pre-use baseline and with ecstasy-naive controls.
By John C.M. Brust, MD
January 13, 2009
Covering:
de Win MML et al., Brain 2008 Nov; 131:2936
Is Childhood Adversity Independently Linked to Lifetime Alcohol Dependence?
Psychiatry Summary and Comment
Epidemiologic data indicate a connection.
By Joel Yager, MD
January 12, 2009
Covering:
Pilowsky DJ et al., Am J Public Health 2008 Dec 4
Violence Among Friends: The Role of Substance Misuse
Psychiatry Summary and Comment
Nonpartner violence shows some similarities to intimate-partner violence.
By Steven Dubovsky, MD
January 12, 2009
Covering:
Murray RL et al., J Stud Alcohol Drugs 2008 Nov; 69:896
Physician Experience and Medical Errors
Emergency Medicine Summary and Comment
Emergency physicians with less than 1.5 years of experience were more likely to commit errors than those with more experience.
Too Much Drink Might Make Your Heart Fib
Women's Health Summary and Comment
Consumption of
