How to Diagnose and Treat Gambling Disorder

Topics: Addiction | Free Articles

Your typical patient with a gambling disorder may not fit yesterday’s stereotype. Consider this case study: A 42-year-old woman presented for relationship issues and problems with gambling. She had begun gambling by buying scratch tickets when she was in her early 30s. At times, she would spend up to $300 per day on these lottery tickets. She ha

Suboxone Formulations: And Then There Were Five

Topics: Addiction

First approved in 2002, Suboxone, a sublingual pill, was undoubtedly a breakthrough in opiate addiction treatment—especially as compared to methadone. Unlike methadone, Suboxone could be prescribed in the office and filled at pharmacies, freeing patients from the shackles of the methodone lifestyle and its required daily clinic visits. We’ve writ

Daily Marijuana Use by Teens Creates Life Problems

Topics: Addiction | Child Psychiatry | Research Updates | Substance Abuse

Cognitive Enhancers: Smart Drugs or Bad Idea?

Topics: Addiction | Free Articles | Substance Abuse

Most of us prescribe cognitive enhancers every day. Examples include stimulants for attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and various dementia medications. Modafanil (Provigil), which is prescribed for sleep apnea and shift work sleep disorder, probably fits the bill, too. But today’s conversation about “smart drugs” is fundamentally

Evaluating and Treating ADHD Symptoms in Patients with Addiction

Topics: Addiction | ADHD | Substance Abuse

Buprenorphine Reduces Total Cost of Care

Topics: Addiction | Research Updates | Substance Abuse

More Questions Than Answers About New Addiction

Topics: Addiction | Research Updates

The New Science on AA and 12-Step Facilitation

Topics: Addiction | Substance Abuse

In this modern era of neuroscience, how can we take seriously the notion that an effective way to address the chronically relapsing brain disease of addiction is by recommending that those affected congregate frequently in rented church basements to discuss their addiction and recovery experiences? And yet, over the past 75 years, Alcoholics Anonymou

AA and TSF

Topics: Addiction | Substance Abuse

Twelve-Step Facilitation (TSF) is a form of psychotherapy directly adapted from AA. The primary goals are acceptance and surrender. Acceptance is defined “as the breakdown of the illusion that the individual, through willpower alone, can effectively and reliably limit or control his/her use of alcohol and/or other drugs” (Nowinski J & Baker S

Alternatives to 12-Step Recovery

Topics: Addiction | Substance Abuse

Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) and its 12-step cousins are the oldest, best known, and most widely available recovery support groups. In recent decades, however, a number of alternatives have appeared that may be better suited for some people in recovery (Humphreys K, J Subst Abuse Treat 2004;26(3):151–158; Kelly JF & White WL, J Groups Addict Recover

Book Review: Authors Question AA’s Effectiveness

Topics: Addiction | Substance Abuse

Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) occupies such a prominent place in popular culture and addiction treatment that it seems a little odd to question its effectiveness. But odd, counterintuitive questions about AA have been accumulating for years, and we finally have a book that collects them all in one place. Lance Dodes, MD, a psychiatrist who has spent deca

A Philosopher’s Take on Alcoholics Anonymous

Topics: Addiction | Substance Abuse

[Editor’s Note: Clancy Martin is the author of the novel, How to Sell. His writing has also appeared in the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and London Review of Books. Martin’s essay, “The Drunk’s Club” (http://bit.ly/1ipLo9R), which appeared in the January 2011 issue of Harper’s Magazine, described his own experience with addiction.]

SBIRT—How Low Can You Go?

Topics: Addiction | Substance Abuse

Hookah Use Substantially Increasing Among Teens

Topics: Addiction | Child Psychiatry

Informed Consent in Opioid Addiction Treatment: An Ethical Obligation

Topics: Addiction | Free Articles | Psychopharmacology Tips

Informed consent—whether it be for psychotherapy, prescribing a medication, or performing a surgical procedure—is an ethical principle firmly established in law and medicine. While there has been no formal research on this subject, my experience suggests that many addiction treatment programs fail to obtain valid informed consent. The starkest ex

Vivitrol: Another Option for Opioid Addiction?

Topics: Addiction | Psychopharmacology Tips

Naltrexone first hit the US market as an oral medication (ReVia) way back in 1984. Over the years, it developed a solid reputation for treating alcoholism and remains a first-line therapy today. Naltrexone was a bust, however, when it came to treating opioid addiction. Oral naltrexone has been found to be no better than placebo at achieving abstinenc

Methadone versus Buprenorphine

Topics: Addiction | Psychopharmacology Tips

Addiction Following Bariatric Surgery

Topics: Addiction | Research Updates

FDA Approves New Naloxone Device to Prevent Overdose Deaths

Topics: Addiction | News of Note

WHO Releases Guidelines on Perinatal Addiction

Topics: Addiction | News of Note | Women's Issues in Psychiatry