Evaluating the readability of online patient-facing resources for alcohol use disorder.

The goal of this study was to assess the readability of online resources pertaining to Alcohol Use Disorder (AUD) as perceived by patients seeking treatment. The National Institutes of Health (NIH) and American Medical Association (AMA) have recommended that medical resources should be written at a 6th-grade reading level. However, prior investigations in various medical fields have revealed that online materials often fail to adhere to these guidelines. An internet search was conducted to simulate the experience of patients seeking information on AUD treatment. The first 30 websites that did not require login credentials were examined using established readability tests. The main outcomes included: Flesch-Kincaid Reading Grade Level, Gunning Fog index, Simple Measure of Gobbledygook (SMOG) Readability Formula, and Coleman-Liau index. Thirty records were identified where the mean readability level was 12.37 (2.54). There were no significant differences in mean readability across readability indices or author type. None of the 30 records met the reading level recommendations as set by the NIH and AMA. In order to enhance accessibility and ultimately improve AUD health outcomes, it is recommended that patient-oriented resources be crafted with adherence to these guidelines. Consequently, future AUD resources ought to prioritize the enhancement of their readability.

Exposure to the Death of Others during the COVID-19 Pandemic: Growing Mistrust in Medical Institutions as a Result of Personal Loss.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: The prominence of death during the COVID-19 pandemic was heightened by the potential of personally knowing someone who lost their life to the virus. The terror management theory (TMT) suggests that the salient presence of death has a pronounced effect on behavior and may result in the ossification of beliefs and actions aligned with one's worldview (i.e., the mortality salience hypothesis). In this study, we evaluated how death exposure early in the COVID-19 pandemic could enact the process of firming up held beliefs and attitudes related to health and safety. Specifically, we tested the hypothesis that exposure to a personal loss during the pandemic would strengthen participants' baseline attitudes and behaviors regarding COVID-19 safety guidelines. METHOD: Data were analyzed from a prospective, regional survey administered at two time points during the pandemic, June-July 2020 and May 2021, in five United States northeastern states. Baseline and follow-up surveys were administered approximately 12 months apart, with adherence to public guidance and death exposure measured at both timepoints and other safety measures at follow-up only. FINDINGS: Our results indicated that there were significant main effects of death exposure on guideline adherence and support for COVID-related public policy. Contrary to the mortality salience hypothesis, death exposures after baseline were related to higher medical mistrust at follow-up for those high in adherence at baseline, rather than those with low adherence. CONCLUSION: Our results offer some conflicting evidence to the mortality salience hypothesis. Rather than entrench people in their worldviews, death in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic appeared to sway people away from their initial stances. This finding has important implications for TMT literature and for the COVID-19 pandemic response.

Treating posttraumatic stress disorder and alcohol use disorder comorbidity: Current pharmacological therapies and the future of MDMA-integrated psychotherapy.

Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and alcohol use disorder (AUD) frequently co-occur in patients who have experienced trauma. This comorbidity leads to a vicious cycle where PTSD symptoms beget heavy drinking and vice versa. There are no FDA-approved medications to treat PTSD-AUD; therefore, individuals suffering from this comorbidity are treated with medication approved to treat the disorders separately or with off-label pharmacological interventions. However, these medications are limited in their efficacy for treating PTSD-AUD comorbidity. Emerging research on the nonclassical psychedelic drug 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) suggests that it may be an effective drug used in conjunction with psychotherapy. The following reviews the current research for clinical pharmacotherapies, as well as MDMA-integrative psychotherapy as they pertain to PTSD and AUD in isolation and co-occurrence. Future directions for the role of psychedelic-integrative therapy for the treatment of this comorbidity are discussed.