Multivariate genome-wide association meta-analysis of over 1 million subjects identifies loci underlying multiple substance use disorders

Genetic liability to substance use disorders can be parsed into loci conferring general and substance-specific addiction risk. We report a multivariate genome-wide association study that disaggregates general and substance-specific loci for problematic alcohol use, problematic tobacco use, and cannabis and opioid use disorders in a sample of 1,025,550 individuals of European and 92,630 individuals of African descent. Nineteen loci were genome-wide significant for the general addiction risk factor (addiction-rf), which showed high polygenicity. Across ancestries PDE4B was significant (among others), suggesting dopamine regulation as a cross-trait vulnerability. The addiction-rf polygenic risk score was associated with substance use disorders, psychopathologies, somatic conditions, and environments associated with the onset of addictions. Substance-specific loci (9 for alcohol, 32 for tobacco, 5 for cannabis, 1 for opioids) included metabolic and receptor genes. These findings provide insight into the genetic architecture of general and substance-specific use disorder risk that may be leveraged as treatment targets.

Substance Use and Mental Illness among Women Admitted in a Rehabilitation Center in Jos, Nigeria: A 5-Year Profile

Substance use disorder are among the most common public health problems caused by using legal and/or illegal substances. Therefore, this study is aimed at reviewing a five-year profile of women admitted at a rehabilitation center in Jos, Nigeria for substance use and mental illness. This is a retrospective cross-sectional study carried out on 183 females admitted between 2012 and 2017 at a rehabilitation center in Jos, Nigeria. Data collection was carried out from documents note of these female participants. Data were analyzed using SPSS version 22. The mean age of the participants was 38.515.3 years. Almost half of the participants were within the age bracket of 20 – 29 years and married (45.9%). Depressive disorder (36.1%) was the commonest mental disorder in the studied participants. Among those abusing substances, multiple substance use (12.6%) was the most prevalent with alcohol use disorder (9.3%) the main diagnosis among those with substance use disorder. According to the result almost half of the studied participants were young, married and educated females. Depression and multiple substance abuse with alcohol the main drug of abuse was a cause for concern in this population. This portrays significant health and economic consequences and the need for urgent action.

Estimating mouthing exposure to chemicals in children’s products

Background Existing models for estimating children’s exposure to chemicals through mouthing currently depends on the availability of chemical- and material-specific experimental migration rates, only covering a few dozen chemicals. Objective This study objective is hence to develop a mouthing exposure model to predict migration into saliva, mouthing exposure, and related health risk from a wide range of chemical-material combinations in children’s products. Methods We collected experimental data on chemical migration from different products into saliva for multiple substance groups and materials, identifying chemical concentration and diffusion coefficient as main properties of influence. To predict migration rates into saliva, we adapted a previously developed migration model for chemicals in food packaging materials. We also developed a regression model based on identified chemical and material properties. Results Our migration predictions correlate well with experimental data (R2 = 0.85) and vary widely from 8 × 10−7 to 32.7 µg/10 cm2/min, with plasticizers in PVC showing the highest values. Related mouthing exposure doses vary across chemicals and materials from a median of 0.005 to 253 µg/kgBW/d. Finally, we combined exposure estimates with toxicity information to yield hazard quotients and identify chemicals of concern for average and upper bound mouthing behavior scenarios. Significance The proposed model can be applied for predicting migration rates for hundreds of chemical-material combinations to support high-throughput screening.

Executive functions and emotion regulation in substance use disorder

ABSTRACT Objective The executive functions (EF) and emotion regulation (ER) and their relationship with the substance use disorder (SUD) were analyzed. Methods A cross-sectional design was used. The sample consisted of 130 volunteers divided into three groups: group 01 (n = 60), composed of participants who did not meet the diagnostic criteria for any type of SUD; group 02 (n = 51), with users with alcohol and/or tobacco use disorder; group 03 (n = 19), with users with multiple substance use disorder, including at least one illicit substance. Results Group 02 presented worse performance in EF and ER when compared to group 01, and showed a significant correlation between the working memory and the use of maladaptive ER. Group 03 showed great losses in EF and ER when compared to the other groups. Conclusion This study supports the idea that EF, ER and SUD are related. In addition, it was observed that people with SUD had worse performance in EF and ER when compared to people without SUD, greater damage being observed in people with SUD of polysubstances.

The patterns and burden of multimorbidity in geriatric patients with prolonged use of addictive medications

Background Multimorbidity and prolonged use of addictive medications are prevalent among older patients, and known to increase the risk of adverse drug events. Yet, the relationship between these two entities has remained understudied. Aims This study explored the association between multimorbidity burden and prolonged use of addictive medications in geriatric patients, adjusted for clinically important covariates. Furthermore, we identified comorbidity patterns in prolonged users. Methods We conducted a cross-sectional study on a consecutive sample of 246 patients, aged 65–90 years, admitted to a large public university hospital in Norway. We defined prolonged use of addictive medications as using benzodiazepines, opioids and/or z-hypnotics beyond the duration recommended by clinical guidelines (≥ 4 weeks). Multimorbidity was assessed with the Cumulative Illness Rating Scale for Geriatrics (CIRS-G), based on diagnoses made by independent physicians. Results Compared to non-prolonged use, prolonged use was significantly more common among patients who had psychiatric (19/27, 70%), liver (19/22, 86%), upper gastrointestinal tract (21/32, 66%), musculoskeletal (52/96, 54%), or nervous system disorders (46/92, 50%). Patients with prolonged use had a higher multimorbidity burden than those without such use (CIRS-G score, mean = 7.7, SD = 2.7 versus mean = 4.6, SD = 2.2, p < 0.001). Multivariable logistic regression indicated a significant association between multimorbidity burden and prolonged addictive medication use (OR = 1.72, 95% CI 1.42–2.08). Predictive margins postestimation showed a systematic increase in the predicted CIRS-G scores when the number of addictive drug used increases. Conclusions Multimorbidity is strongly associated with prolonged use of addictive medications. Multiple substance use may aggravate disease burden of older patients.

Relationship Between The Level of Alcohol Consumption to The Depression of Multiple Substance Users in Sleman Yogyakarta

Introduction: The problem of using addictive substances, especially alcohol in Indonesia, is still a serious health problem. Since 2013, data on the proportion of alcoholic drink consumption in Indonesia has been found to have increased in 32 provinces in Indonesia. Alcohol consumption not only causes physical problems, but also mental disorders, triggers acts of violence, and disturbs other aspects of life. One of the psychiatric disorders that arise due to the abuse of alcoholic beverages is depression. If not treated immediately, depression can lead to suicidal thoughts that threaten the individual and have an impact on those around him. The aim of this study was to examine the level of alcohol consumption and its relationship to the level of depression. Methods: This study is an analytical study with a quantitative cross-sectional survey design. The sampling technique was carried out by purposive sampling using the AUDIT questionnaire for the level of alcohol consumption, and BDI-II for the level of depression. Results: The research sample was obtained as many as 30 respondents. The results of the two-variable analysis using the somer test showed that there was no significant relationship between the level of alcohol use and the level of depression. Conclusion: In this study, there was no statistically significant relationship between the level of alcohol use and the level of depression in individuals who used multiple substances.

Long-Term Substance Use Can Cause Irreversible Photopic Vision Changes in Substance Use Disorder in Remission

Objective Substance use has such effects on pupil diameter. Although there is knowledge about the acute effects of substances on pupils, studies showing their chronic effects are limited. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the effect of long-term substance use on scotopic, mesopic, and photopic vision.Methods The present study with cross-sectional desgn was conducted at the Adiyaman Training and Research Hospital for Psychiatry in Adiyaman. This study involved 110 substance use disorder (SUD) patients and 46 healthy volunteers as the control. The parameters were measured and recorded automatically by a device.Results The mean age was 23.44±5.53 years in the SUD group and 24.26±5.38 years in healthy controls (p=0.420). The mean age of onset of the substance was 17.74±3.89 years and the mean duration of substance use was 3.54±2.9 years. It was determined that the patients had not used any substance for a mean of 121.73±117.49 days. There was no significant difference between patient and control groups in terms of scotopic and mesopic measurements of both eyes (p>0.05). Photopic measurements were significantly higher in the patient group than in the control group (p<0.05). Photopic measurements were significantly higher in the opioid, cannabis, ecstasy, and multiple substance use groups than in the control group (p<0.05).Conclusion The most important topic of this study is that photopic vision is permanently impaired in patients with a history of chronic substance use. This was attributed to disrupted sympathetic-parasympathetic hierarchy.

Does Participation in Sports Influence the Prevalence of and Initiation into Multiple Substance Misuse in Adolescence? A Two-Year Prospective Analysis

Concurrent smoking and harmful drinking (CSHD) in adolescence is an important public health and social problem, while participation in sports is considered as being protective against CSHD. This study aimed to prospectively evaluate the influence of various facets of sports participation on the prevalence of and initiation into CSHD of adolescents. Participants were adolescents from southern Croatia (n = 711, 43.6% females, 16 years of age at study baseline), who were tested at baseline and at follow-up (two years later). Variables included gender, age, sports factors (participation in individual and team sports, sport experience, competitive success, intensity of involvement in sports), and CSHD. The CSHD prevalence did not increase significantly over the course of the study (from 5.6% to 7.5%, p > 0.05). Binomial logistic regression with age and gender as covariates suggested that team sports participation correlated to CSHD prevalence at baseline, and follow-up, with higher risk for CSHD among those adolescents who quit team sports (OR = 9.18 and 2.68, 95%CI = 2.04–22.26 and 1.05–6.83 for baseline and follow-up, respectively), and those never involved in team sports (OR = 9.00 and 3.70, 95%CI = 2.07–39.16 and 1.57–8.72 for baseline and follow-up, respectively). A higher risk of CSHD at baseline was seen among those adolescents who were involved in sports for longer (OR = 1.66, 95%CI = 1.16–2.38). The results are discussed in the context of the fact that the study included adolescents at the age of rigid sports selection (the transition from youth to professional-level sports). Since the majority of participants began CSHD at an earlier age, further studies in subjects of a younger age range are warranted.