Alcoholism, clinical and experimental research
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Alcohol. Clin. Exp. Res. · Jul 2010
Comparative StudyChronic ethanol disrupts circadian photic entrainment and daily locomotor activity in the mouse.
Chronic ethanol abuse is associated with disrupted circadian rhythms and sleep. Ethanol administration impairs circadian clock phase-resetting, suggesting a mode for the disruptive effect of alcohol abuse on circadian timing. Here, we extend previous studies to explore the effects of chronic forced ethanol on photic phase-resetting, photic entrainment, and daily locomotor activity patterns in C57BL/6J mice. ⋯ These results confirm that chronic ethanol consumption and withdrawal markedly impair circadian clock photic phase-resetting. Ethanol also disturbs the temporal structure of nighttime locomotor activity and photic entrainment. Collectively, these results suggest a direct action of ethanol on the SCN clock.
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Alcohol. Clin. Exp. Res. · Jun 2010
Multicenter StudyThe relationship between self-reported drinking and BAC level in emergency room injury cases: is it a straight line?
While the validity of self-reported consumption based on blood alcohol concentration (BAC) has been found to be high in emergency room (ER) samples, little research exists on the estimated number of drinks consumed given a BAC level. Such data would be useful in establishing a dose-response relationship between drinking and risk (e.g., of injury) in those studies for which the number of drinks consumed is not available but BAC is. ⋯ Future studies may benefit from investigating the factors suspected to be driving the weak relationships between these measures, including the actual time over which the reported alcohol was consumed and pattern of drinking over the consumption period.
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Alcohol. Clin. Exp. Res. · May 2010
Comparative StudyDifferential effects of acute and chronic ethanol exposure on orexin expression in the perifornical lateral hypothalamus.
Recent reports support the involvement of hypothalamic orexigenic peptides in stimulating ethanol intake. Our previous studies have examined the effects of ethanol on hypothalamic peptide systems of the paraventricular nucleus (PVN) and identified a positive feedback loop in which PVN peptides, such as enkephalin and galanin, stimulate ethanol intake and ethanol, in turn, stimulates the expression of these peptides. Recently, orexin (OX), a peptide produced mainly by cells in the perifornical lateral hypothalamus (PFLH), has been shown to play an important role in mediating the rewarding aspects of ethanol intake. However, there is little evidence showing the effects that ethanol itself may have on the OX peptide system. In order to understand the feedback relationship between ethanol and the OX system, the current investigation was designed to measure OX gene expression in the PFLH following acute as well as chronic ethanol intake. ⋯ These results lead us to propose that OX neurons, while responsive to negative feedback signals from chronic ethanol consumption, are stimulated by acute ethanol administration, most potently in the LH where OX may trigger central reward mechanisms that promote further ethanol consumption.
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Alcohol. Clin. Exp. Res. · Apr 2010
Comparative StudyPrenatal alcohol exposure alters biobehavioral reactivity to pain in newborns.
To examine biobehavioral responses to an acute pain event in a Cape Town, South Africa, cohort consisting of 28 Cape Colored (mixed ancestry) newborns (n = 14) heavily exposed to alcohol during pregnancy (exposed), and born to abstainers (n = 14) or light (< or = 0.5 oz absolute alcohol/d) drinkers (controls). ⋯ Both cardiac autonomic and hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal stress reactivity measures suggest a blunted response to an acute noxious event in alcohol-exposed newborns. This is supported by results on the Brazelton Neonatal Scale indicating reduced behavioral arousal in the exposed group. To our knowledge, these data provide the first biobehavioral examination of early pain reactivity in alcohol-exposed newborns and have important implications for understanding neuro-/biobehavioral effects of prenatal alcohol exposure in the newborn period.
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Alcohol. Clin. Exp. Res. · Feb 2010
Randomized Controlled TrialBrief motivational interviewing for DWI recidivists who abuse alcohol and are not participating in DWI intervention: a randomized controlled trial.
Driving while impaired (DWI) recidivists with unresolved alcohol use problems pose an ongoing risk for traffic safety. Following conviction, many do not participate in mandated alcohol evaluation and intervention programs, or continue to drink problematically after being relicensed. This study investigated if, in DWI recidivists with alcohol problems and not currently involved in DWI intervention, Brief Motivational Interviewing (BMI) produced greater reductions in risky drinking at 6- and 12-month follow-up compared to an information-advice control condition. Additional analyses explored whether BMI was associated with greater readiness to change, subsequent substance abuse treatment service utilization, and satisfaction compared to the control condition. ⋯ Brief MI approaches warrant further implementation and effectiveness research as an opportunistic DWI intervention strategy to reduce risks associated with alcohol use outside of clinical and DWI relicensing settings.