Applying computerized adaptive testing to the Desires for Speed Questionnaire in the Chinese population: A simulation study.

The current methods for measuring patient-reported outcomes for amphetamine (speed) craving have limitation ability to adapt to the needs of individual patients while maintaining consistency in their scores. This study aimed to investigate whether the 40-item Desires for Speed Questionnaire (DSQ) could be improved for assessing clinical subjects using computerized adaptive testing (CAT). A sample of 677 participants from four drug addiction treatment centers in China was utilized in the study. Two types of analysis were conducted using the response data. First, the psychometric properties of all items were evaluated to meet the requirements of CAT. Second, multiple CAT simulations were carried out using real response data. The results indicated that the CAT method, which only required a small number of items (50%-75%), produced results that were only slightly different from the full DSQ assessment in terms of measuring amphetamine craving and criterion validity. In conclusion, this study suggests that developing a DSQ CAT for clinical subjects is useful as it leads to more efficient measurement without compromising the reliability of the test outcomes. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).

Identification of Potential Biomarkers for Diagnosis of Patients with Methamphetamine Use Disorder.

The current method for diagnosing methamphetamine use disorder (MUD) relies on self-reports and interviews with psychiatrists, which lack scientific rigor. This highlights the need for novel biomarkers to accurately diagnose MUD. In this study, we identified transcriptome biomarkers using hair follicles and proposed a diagnostic model for monitoring the MUD treatment process. We performed RNA sequencing analysis on hair follicle cells from healthy controls and former and current MUD patients who had been detained in the past for illegal use of methamphetamine (MA). We selected candidate genes for monitoring MUD patients by performing multivariate analysis methods, such as PCA and PLS-DA, and PPI network analysis. We developed a two-stage diagnostic model using multivariate ROC analysis based on the PLS-DA method. We constructed a two-step prediction model for MUD diagnosis using multivariate ROC analysis, including 10 biomarkers. The first step model, which distinguishes non-recovered patients from others, showed very high accuracy (prediction accuracy, 98.7%). The second step model, which distinguishes almost-recovered patients from healthy controls, showed high accuracy (prediction accuracy, 81.3%). This study is the first report to use hair follicles of MUD patients and to develop a MUD prediction model based on transcriptomic biomarkers, which offers a potential solution to improve the accuracy of MUD diagnosis and may lead to the development of better pharmacological treatments for the disorder in the future.

Methamphetamine-associated cardiomyopathy: an addiction medicine perspective.

Methamphetamine-associated cardiomyopathy (MaCM) is an increasingly recognised serious complication from methamphetamine (MA) use. It is characterised as the development of otherwise unexplained heart failure in the context of MA use. MaCM predominantly affects a young and vulnerable population with high morbidity and mortality. It is the second leading cause of mortality in patients with MA use disorder (MUD). Our understanding of MaCM pathogenesis is based on observational cohorts and autopsy studies. Currently, the treatment of MaCM is predicated on abstinence. Medical therapies offer some benefit to a minority of patients; however, without abstinence, medical therapies are often ineffective. Abstinence is difficult for most patients to achieve; all clinicians require an understanding of MaCM and how to educate patients on the risks of ongoing use. Where available, referral to addiction medicine specialists to assist with treatment of MUD is recommended. This review aims to: (i) explain the proposed pathologic mechanisms of MaCM; (ii) summarise recent recommendations of the screening and treatment of MaCM; and (iii) highlight the role of addiction medicine in the management of patient with MaCM.

An adaptive design to screen, treat, and retain people with opioid use disorders who use methamphetamine in methadone clinics (STAR-OM): study protocol of a clinical trial.

BACKGROUND: Methamphetamine use could jeopardize the current efforts to address opioid use disorder and HIV infection. Evidence-based behavioral interventions (EBI) are effective in reducing methamphetamine use. However, evidence on optimal combinations of EBI is limited. This protocol presents a type-1 effectiveness-implementation hybrid design to evaluate the effectiveness, cost-effectiveness of adaptive methamphetamine use interventions, and their implementation barriers in Vietnam. METHOD: Design: Participants will be first randomized into two frontline interventions for 12 weeks. They will then be placed or randomized to three adaptive strategies for another 12 weeks. An economic evaluation and an ethnographic evaluation will be conducted alongside the interventions. PARTICIPANTS: We will recruit 600 participants in 20 methadone clinics. ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA: (1) age 16+; (2) Alcohol, Smoking and Substance Involvement Screening Test (ASSIST) scores ≥ 10 for methamphetamine use or confirmed methamphetamine use with urine drug screening; (3) willing to provide three pieces of contact information; and (4) having a cell phone. OUTCOMES: Outcomes are measured at 13, 26, and 49 weeks and throughout the interventions. Primary outcomes include the (1) increase in HIV viral suppression, (2) reduction in HIV risk behaviors, and (3) reduction in methamphetamine use. COVID-19 response: We developed a response plan for interruptions caused by COVID-19 lockdowns to ensure data quality and intervention fidelity. DISCUSSION: This study will provide important evidence for scale-up of EBIs for methamphetamine use among methadone patients in limited-resource settings. As the EBIs will be delivered by methadone providers, they can be readily implemented if the trial demonstrates effectiveness and cost-effectiveness. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov NCT04706624. Registered on 13 January 2021. https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT04706624.

Evidence for gender differences in the Amphetamine/Methamphetamine ratio in the hair of subjects undergoing Fitness-to-Drive testing.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Retrospective analysis of hair testing data provides insights in drugs abuse patterns and improves results interpretation. Cases from subjects undergoing driving fitness assessment (2010-2020) were examined to evidence patterns in methamphetamine (MA) abuse. MATERIALS AND METHODS: All cases with positive MA (≥0.025 ng/mg) were included (n = 585). Data available were gender, age, MA and A (amphetamine) in hair (h), hair color/treatment, length of proximal hair. Cases with Ah/MAh ≤ 0.35 (n = 469) were arbitrarily selected to remove as many combined A, MA users. ANOVA was performed to detect Ah/MAh predictors. RESULTS: No predictors affected Ah/MAh. A bimodal frequency distribution was observed. We clustered cases in two groups (1, Ah/MAh 0.025-0.070; 2, Ah/MAh 0.071-0.120) and performed logistic regression. Only gender exhibited significant difference across groups (p = 0.0080). Odds ratio for females falling into group 2 was 2.86 times higher (CI97.5 1.34-6.44). CONCLUSION: Literature data support the hypothesis that the two Ah/MAh groups represent different phenotypes of the CYP2D6-mediated MA N-demethylation. Whether gender plays a role in such difference could not be confirmed. However, these results provide further suggestion of an association of gender and pharmacogenomics with MA disposition, requiring these factors to be considered in future research.

Circulating microRNA miR-137 as a stable biomarker for methamphetamine abstinence.

OBJECTIVE: Stimulant use instigates abstinence syndrome in humans. miRNAs are a critical component for the pathophysiology of stimulant abstinence. Here we sought to identify a miRNA marker of methamphetamine abstinence in the circulating extracellular vesicles (cEVs). METHODS: miR-137 in the cEVs was quantified by qPCR in thirty-seven patients under methamphetamine abstinence and thirty-five age-matched healthy controls recruited from 2014 to 2016 from the general adult population in a hospital setting, Seoul, South Korea. Diagnostic power was evaluated by area under curve in the receiver-operating characteristics curve and other multiple statistical parameters. RESULTS: Patients under methamphetamine abstinence exhibited a significant reduction in cEV miR-137. Overall, cEV miR-137 had high potential as a blood-based marker of methamphetamine abstinence. cEV miR-137 retained the diagnostic power irrespective of the duration of methamphetamine abstinence or methamphetamine use. Interestingly, cEV miR-137 interacted with age: Control participants displayed an aging-dependent reduction of cEV miR-137, while methamphetamine-abstinent patients showed an aging-dependent increase in cEV miR-137. Accordingly, cEV miR-137 had variable diagnostic power depending on age, in which cEV miR-137 more effectively discriminated methamphetamine abstinence in the younger population. Duration of methamphetamine use or abstinence, cigarette smoking status, depressive disorder, or antidepressant treatment did not interact with the methamphetamine abstinence-induced reduction of cEV miR-137. CONCLUSION: Our data collectively demonstrated that miR-137 in the circulating extracellular vesicles held high potential as a stable and accurate diagnostic marker of methamphetamine abstinence syndrome.

Mass spectrometry-based metabolomics in hair from current and former patients with methamphetamine use disorder.

Drug use disorder, a chronic and relapsing mental disorder, is primarily diagnosed via self-reports of drug-seeking behavioral and psychological conditions, accompanied by psychiatric assessment. Therefore, the identification of peripheral biomarkers that reflect pathological changes caused by such disorders is essential for improving treatment monitoring. Hair possesses great potential as a metabolomic sample for monitoring chronic diseases. This study aimed to investigate metabolic alterations in hair to elucidate a suitable treatment modality for methamphetamine (MA) use disorder. Consequently, both targeted and untargeted metabolomics analyses were performed via mass spectrometry on hair samples obtained from current and former patients with MA use disorder. Healthy subjects (HS), current (CP), and former (FP) patients with this disorder were selected based on psychiatric diagnosis and screening the concentrations of MA in hair. The drug abuse screening questionnaire scores did not differentiate between CP and FP. Moreover, according to both targeted and untargeted metabolomics, clustering was not observed among all three groups. Nevertheless, a model of partial least squares-discriminant analysis was established between HS and CP based on seven metabolites derived from the targeted metabolomics results. Thus, this study demonstrates the promising potential of hair metabolomes for monitoring recovery from drug use disorders in clinical practice.

Reliability and validity of DSM-IV and DSM-5 methamphetamine use disorder diagnoses using the Chinese Version of the Semi-Structured Assessment for Drug Dependence and Alcoholism (SSADDA).

BACKGROUND: The Semi-structured Assessment for Drug Dependence and Alcoholism (SSADDA) was developed to assess substance-use disorders and other psychiatric traits. We translated the SSADDA into Chinese and evaluated its inter-rater reliability and concurrent validity in diagnosing DSM-IV methamphetamine (MA) dependence and DSM-5 MA-use disorder (MUD). METHODS: The sample comprised 231 participants who were interviewed using the Chinese SSADDA and the Mini-International Neuropsychiatric Interview (Chinese MINI) for concurrent validation. Of the 231 participants, 191 were interviewed by two different interviewers two weeks apart. We evaluated the inter-rater reliability and concurrent validity of the diagnoses using percent agreement and Cohen's kappa coefficient (κ). Cohen's linear weighted kappa was used to assess the reliability of DSM-5 MUD severity. RESULTS: It showed good inter-rater reliability and no significant differences among the DSM-5 MUD (κ = 0.71), DSM-IV MA abuse or dependence (κ = 0.72), and the DSM-IV diagnoses of MA dependence (κ = 0.66) and abuse (κ = 0.68) tested separately. The weighted kappa was 0.67 across the three DSM-5 MUD severity levels. The reliability of each individual diagnostic criterion for DSM-5 MUD ranged from fair to excellent (κ = 0.41-0.80), except for "repeated attempts to quit/control use" (κ = 0.38). The concurrent validity based on MINI-derived diagnoses ranged from good to excellent (κ = 0.65-0.78). CONCLUSIONS: This study shows that the Chinese version of SSADDA has good reliability and validity among Chinese MA users.

Oxytocin increases physiological linkage during group therapy for methamphetamine use disorder: a randomized clinical trial.

Patients and psychotherapists often exhibit behavioral, psychological, and physiological similarity. Here, we test whether oxytocin-a neuropeptide that can enhance expressivity and social perception-influences time-lagged "linkage" of autonomic nervous system responses among participants and facilitators during group therapy. Physiological linkage estimates (n = 949) were created from ten cohorts, each with two facilitators (n = 5) and four to six participants (n = 48), over six weekly sessions of group therapy for methamphetamine use disorder. All participants of a cohort received oxytocin or placebo intranasally in a randomized double-blind procedure before each session. Cardiac interbeat intervals (IBI) were measured continuously during sessions to estimate physiological linkage, operationalized as one cohort-mate's IBI reactivity during one minute predicting another cohort-mate's IBI reactivity during the following minute. In oxytocin cohorts, participants and facilitators experienced significant physiological linkage to their cohort-mates (i.e., their physiological responses were predicted by the prior responses of their cohort-mates) and significantly more linkage than people in placebo cohorts. Both effects occurred during the first and second sessions but not later sessions. Results suggest that oxytocin may enhance psychosocial processes often associated with linkage-such as social engagement-in groups and highlight oxytocin's potential to improve group cohesion during group therapy.Clinical Trials Registration: NCT02881177, First published on 26/08/2016.

Association of NQO1 levels and its genetic polymorphism with susceptibility to methamphetamine dependence.

BACKGROUND: The quinone oxidoreductase 1 (NQO1) gene was involved in the pathophysiological process of illicit drugs abuse, and its polymorphisms might be associated with methamphetamine (METH) dependence susceptibility. The purpose of this study was to examine the NQO1 mRNA and protein levels and to analyze the 609C/T polymorphism (rs1800566) between METH-dependent patients and controls. METHODS: A total of 392 METH-dependent patients (cases) and 669 healthy controls (controls) were enrolled in the study. The quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) were used to detect the relative expressions of NQO1 mRNA in PBMCs and protein levels in plasma, respectively. PCR-restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP-PCR) and direct-sequencing genotyping were used to detect the alleles and genotypes of NQO1 609C/T polymorphism. RESULTS: The levels of NQO1 mRNA in cases (3.2650 ± 2.2943) was significantly higher than in controls (1.0125 ± 0.7959) (p < 0.001), the plasma protein in cases (0.2368 ± 0.1486) was significantly lower than in controls (0.5844 ± 0.1742) (p < 0.001). The T allele of the 609C/T polymorphism significantly increased the risk of METH dependence (p = 0.032, OR = 1.214, 95%CI = 1.017-1.450). The TC and TC/TT genotypes of 609C/T were observed significantly more frequently in cases than in controls, respectively (TC vs CC: p = 0.012, OR = 1.457, 95% CI = 1.087-1.952; TC/TT vs CC: p = 0.008, OR = 1.460, 95% CI = 1.102-1.935). Similar results were obtained after adjusting for age and sex. We failed to find that any genotype of 609C/T polymorphism affected the mRNA or plasma protein levels in controls, respectively (p > 0.05). CONCLUSION: The findings suggested that NQO1 might play an important role in the pathophysiological process of METH dependence, and the 609C/T polymorphism might contribute to the susceptibility to METH dependence in a Chinese Han population.

Methamphetamine-Associated Heart Failure Hospitalizations Across the United States: Geographic and Social Disparities.

Background Although methamphetamine abuse is associated with the development of heart failure (HF), nationwide data on methamphetamine-associated HF (MethHF) hospitalizations are limited. This study evaluates nationwide HF hospitalizations associated with substance abuse to better understand MethHF prevalence trends and the clinical characteristics of those patients. Methods and Results This cross-sectional period-prevalence study used hospital discharge data from the National Inpatient Sample to identify adult primary HF hospitalizations with a secondary diagnosis of abuse of methamphetamines, cocaine, or alcohol in the United States from 2002 to 2014. All 2014 MethHF admissions were separated by regional census division to evaluate geographical distribution. Demographics, payer information, and clinical characteristics of MethHF hospitalizations were compared with all other HF hospitalizations. Total nationwide MethHF hospitalizations increased from 547 in 2002 to 6625 in 2014 with a predominance on the West Coast. Methamphetamine abuse was slightly more common among primary HF hospitalizations compared with all-cause hospitalizations (7.4 versus 6.4 per 1000; Cohen h=0.012; P<0.001). Among HF hospitalizations, patients with MethHF were younger (mean age, 48.9 versus 72.4 years; Cohen d=1.93; P<0.001), more likely to be on Medicaid (59.4% versus 8.8%; Cohen h=1.16; P<0.001) or uninsured (12.0% versus 2.6%; Cohen h=0.36; P<0.001), and more likely to present to urban hospitals (43.8% versus 28.3%; Cohen h=0.32; P<0.001) than patients with non-methamphetamine associated HF. Patients with MethHF had higher rates of psychiatric comorbidities and were more likely to leave the hospital against medical advice. Conclusions MethHF hospitalizations have significantly increased in the United States, particularly on the West Coast. Coordinated public health policies and systems of care are needed to address this rising epidemic.

Changes of BDNF exon IV DNA methylation are associated with methamphetamine dependence.

Aim: We investigated DNA methylation of BDNF in methamphetamine (METH) dependence in humans and an animal model. Materials & methods:BDNF methylation at exon IV was determined by pyrosequencing of blood DNA from METH-dependent and control subjects, and from rat brain following an escalating dose of METH or vehicle. Bdnf expression was determined in rat brain. Results:BDNF methylation was increased in human METH dependence, greatest in subjects with psychosis and in prefrontal cortex of METH-administered rats; rat hippocampus showed reduced Bdnf methylation and increased gene expression. Conclusion:BDNF methylation is abnormal in human METH dependence, especially METH-dependent psychosis, and in METH-administered rats. This may influence BDNF expression and contribute to the neurotoxic effects of METH exposure.

Lay abstract The effects of methamphetamine (METH), an addictive psychostimulant drug, on changes of DNA methylation of an important regulator of neuronal survival, BDNF, were examined in blood of METH-dependent patients and in the brain of METH-administered rats. BDNF methylation was increased in patients and in the prefrontal cortex of METH-administered rats, while rat hippocampus showed a reduction of Bdnf methylation, with an equivalent increase in gene expression. The methylation increases in humans were greatest in those with a METH-induced psychosis. Although a relationship between Bdnf methylation and its expression has not been proven, changes of BDNF DNA methylation are associated with METH dependence, especially METH-dependent psychosis, suggesting that METH neurotoxicity may relate to the effects of changes in BDNF methylation.

Direction of the relationship between methamphetamine use and positive psychotic symptoms in regular methamphetamine users: evidence from a prospective cohort study.

BACKGROUND: Methamphetamine has been consistently associated with positive psychotic symptoms, but little is known about whether the reverse also occurs. AIMS: This study determined whether the relationship between methamphetamine use and positive psychotic symptoms is bidirectional over 12 months. The impact of lifetime psychotic disorders and methamphetamine dependence on these relationships was also examined. METHOD: A total of 201 regular (at least monthly) primary methamphetamine users were recruited from free needle and syringe programmes in three Australian cities. Data on the frequency of methamphetamine and other drug use (from Timeline Followback inteviews) and the severity of positive psychotic symptoms (using the Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale) in the past 2 weeks were collected in 12 contiguous monthly face-to-face interviews (mean of 9.14/11 (s.d. = 3.16) follow-ups completed). Diagnoses were derived using the Psychiatric Research Interview for DSM-IV Substance and Mental Disorders. RESULTS: The mean age of participants was 31.71 years (s.d. = 8.19) and 39% (n = 77) were women. At baseline 55% (n = 110) were dependent on methamphetamine and 51% (n = 102) had a lifetime psychotic disorder. Cross-lagged dynamic panel models found a significant bidirectional relationship between psychotic symptoms and methamphetamine use (Comparative Fit Index (CFI) = 0.94, standardised root mean square residual (SRMR) = 0.05, root mean square error of approximation (RMSEA) = 0.05, 95% CI 0.04-0.06). The magnitude of the relationship in each direction was similar, and the presence of methamphetamine dependence or a lifetime psychotic disorder did not have an impact on results. CONCLUSIONS: A dynamic, bidirectional relationship between methamphetamine and psychotic symptoms of similar magnitude in each direction was found over 1 year. This suggests integrated treatments that target methamphetamine, psychotic symptoms and their interrelationship may be of most benefit.

Current Situation of Methamphetamine Abuse and Related Research Progress.

Drug problem is a major social and public security problem in the world. Drug abuse poses a great threat to economic development, social stability and public health. In recent years, synthetic drugs represented by methamphetamine have surpassed traditional drugs such as morphine, heroin, ketamine and become one of the most abused drugs in the world. In order to solve the problem of drug abuse, it is of great theoretical value and practical significance to carry out all-round and multi-level scientific research on drug-related issues. Based on the current situation of drug abuse, this article reviews research progresses on the epidemiology of methamphetamine abuse, the monitoring technology, the basic researches on toxicity damage, the withdrawal drug screening, the related clinical comorbidity and the testing technologies, comprehensively presenting the development trend of methamphetamine abuse related issues.

Measurement invariance and psychometric properties of Perceived Stigma toward People who use Substances (PSPS) among three types of substance use disorders: Heroin, amphetamine, and alcohol.

BACKGROUND: The 8-item self-report Perceived Stigma toward Substance Users Scale (PSAS) is a commonly used instrument to assess stigma for people with substance use disorders. This study aimed to develop and validate the Taiwan version of the PSAS entitled Perceived Stigma toward People who use Substances - Taiwan version (PSPS-TV) among individuals with substance use disorders. METHODS: Patients with substance use disorders (N = 300; mean age = 45.22; 255 males) completed the PSPS-TV, Self-Stigma Scale-Short (SSS-S), Taiwan Depression Questionnaire (TDQ), and Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale (RSES). Confirmatory factor analysis was used to test the construct validity and the measurement invariance of the PSPS-TV. Concurrent validity was tested using the correlations between PSPS-TV and SSS-S, TDQ, and RSES scores. RESULTS: The confirmatory factor analysis supported the construct validity and measurement invariance of the PSPS-TV. SSS-S scores explained 13 %, TDQ scores explained 10 % and RSES scores explained 17 % of the PSPS-TV score variance with moderate standardized coefficients (0.38, 0.32 and -0.42, respectively; all p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: The PSPS-TV is an appropriate instrument to assess perceived stigma for individuals residing in Taiwan who have substance use disorders. Taiwan healthcare providers may thus consider using the PSPS-TV to assess perceived stigma relating to substance use in Taiwan.

The exploration of optimized protocol for repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation in the treatment of methamphetamine use disorder: A randomized sham-controlled study.

BACKGROUND: The prefrontal-striatal circuit is a core circuit related to substance dependence. Previous studies have found that repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) targeting the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) (key region of executive network) had limited responses, while inhibiting hyperactivation of ventromedial prefrontal cortex (vmPFC) (key region of limbic network) may be another strategy. However, there is currently no comparison between these two treatment locations. METHODS: Seventy-four methamphetamine-dependent patients were randomly assigned to one of treatment groups with two-week treatment: (1) Group A: intermittent theta-burst stimulation (iTBS) targeting the left DLPFC; (2) Group B: continuous theta-burst stimulation (cTBS) targeting the left vmPFC; (3) Group C: a combination of treatment protocol of Group A and Group B; (4) Group D: sham theta-burst stimulation. The primary endpoint was the change of cue-induced craving. The trial was registered at ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT03736317). FINDINGS: The three real TBS groups had more craving decrease effect than the sham group (p<0.01). The changes of craving were positively correlated with the improvement of anxiety and withdrawal symptom. With the highest respondence rate, group C also had shorter respondence time than Group A (p = 0.03). Group C was effective in improve depression symptoms (p = 0.04) and withdrawal symptom (p = 0.02) compared with Group D. Besides, Group C was significant in improve sleep quality (p = 0.04) compared with Group A. Baseline depression scores and spatial working memory were positively predicting the intervention response. INTERPRETATION: The rTMS paradigms involving vmPFC with cTBS are optimized protocols and well-tolerated for methamphetamine-dependent individuals, and they may have better efficacies compared with DLPFC iTBS. Emotion and cognitive function are rTMS treatment response predictors for methamphetamine-dependent patients. FUNDING: This work was supported by the National Key R&D Program of China (2017YFC1310400), National Natural Science Foundation of China (81,771,436, 81,801,319, 81,601,164), Shanghai Municipal Health and Family Planning Commission (2017ZZ02021), Municipal Human Resources Development Program for Outstanding Young Talents in Medical and Health Sciences in Shanghai (2017YQ013), Qihang Project of Shanghai Mental Health Center (2019-QH-05), Shanghai Sailing Program (19YF1442100), Shanghai Key Laboratory of Psychotic Disorders (13DZ2260500), Program of Shanghai Academic Research Leader (17XD1403300), Shanghai Municipal Science and Technology Major Project (2018SHZDZX05), and Shanghai Clinical Research Center for Mental Health (19MC1911100).

Prevalence of obesity among U.S. population with substance dependence.

AIM: To investigate associations between substance dependence and obesity. METHODS: Obesity (body mass index ≥ 30 kg/m2) status and the status of dependence on heroin, stimulant, marijuana, nicotine and alcohol (past-month status for nicotine and past-year status for all others) were identified from the U.S. National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH, 2015-2017) datasets. SAS Surveylogistic regression was used to estimate adjusted odds ratio (AOR) for the association between each substance dependence and obesity, adjusting for potentially confounding effects of sociodemographic factors and health condition. RESULTS: It was estimated that 10.6 % of noninstitutional U.S. residents aged 12 years or older were nicotine-dependent, 3.0 % alcohol-dependent, 1.0 % marijuana-dependent, 0.6 % stimulant-dependent, and 0.2 % heroin-dependent. Heroin-dependent individuals had 59 % lower odds of obesity relative to their non-dependent counterparts (AOR = 0.41; 95 % CI: 0.28-0.60; p < 0.0001). Lower odds of obesity were also noted for marijuana-dependent (AOR = 0.64; 95 % CI: 0.56-0.73; p < 0.0001), nicotine-dependent (AOR = 0.68; 95 % CI: 0.64-0.72; p < 0.0001) and alcohol-dependent (AOR = 0.77, 95 % CI: 0.69-0.84; p < 0.0001) individuals, but not statistically significant for stimulant-dependent individuals (AOR = 0.84; 95 % CI: 0.68-1.02; p = 0.0825). CONCLUSIONS: Heroin, marijuana, nicotine and alcohol dependence were associated with lower odds of obesity than their non-dependence counterparts. Main findings based on 2015-2017 NSDUH are consistent with findings from our prior report based on clinical trials data from National Institute on Drug Abuse Clinical Trials Network, and other epidemiological evidence in the literature. These findings can alert substance abuse treatment professionals to monitor weight change, especially among weight-concerned substance abusers.

The contribution of methamphetamine use to crime: Evidence from Australian longitudinal data.

BACKGROUND: To quantify the extent to which methamphetamine use is associated with increases in crime net of any premorbid risk of criminality among people who use the drug. METHODS: Four one-month data panels from 469 participants dependent on methamphetamine were drawn from the MATES cohort (N = 501). Odds ratios for within-person effects were extracted from a random intercept logistic regression model for crime during periods of methamphetamine use compared to no use. Effects were adjusted for time-varying measures of age, other substance use, and socio-economic disadvantage (income, unemployment and unstable accommodation). Involvement in crime (property crime, drug dealing, fraud, violent crime) and days of methamphetamine in the past month were assessed using the Opiate Treatment Index. RESULTS: Crime was more likely during months when participants used methamphetamine compared to when they did not (OR 13.2 95% CI 8.5-20.6; AOR 4.7 95% CI 2.8-8.0), this reflecting more property crime (OR 10.6 95% CI 6.3-18.0; AOR 5.5 95% CI 2.8-10.8), violent crime (OR 8.2 95% CI 4.2-15.9; AOR 3.4 95% CI 1.5-8.0), fraud (OR 3.4, 95% CI 2.0-5.8; AOR 1.7 95% CI 0.8-3.3) and dealing drugs (OR 18.2 95% CI 10.2-32.5; AOR 5.9 95% CI 3.0-11.9), although the adjusted relationship for fraud was not significant. Effects were dose related. CONCLUSIONS: The use of methamphetamine was associated with significant increases in crime beyond premorbid risk for criminality. Crime is a likely social consequence of methamphetamine use and efforts are needed to reduce this impact.

Using machine-learning approach to distinguish patients with methamphetamine dependence from healthy subjects in a virtual reality environment.

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to evaluate whether machine learning (ML) can be used to distinguish patients with methamphetamine dependence from healthy controls by using their surface electroencephalography (EEG) and galvanic skin response (GSR) in a drug-simulated virtual reality (VR) environment. METHODS: A total of 333 participants with methamphetamine (METH) dependence and 332 healthy control subjects were recruited between January 2018 and January 2019. EEG (five electrodes) and GSR signals were collected under four VR environments: one neutral scenario and three METH-simulated scenarios. Three ML classification techniques were evaluated: random forest (RF), support vector machine (SVM), and logistic regression (LR). RESULTS: The MANOVA showed no interaction effects among the two subject groups and the 4 VR scenarios. Taking patient groups as the main effect, the METH user group had significantly lower GSR, lower EEG power in delta (p < .001), and alpha bands (p < .001) than healthy subjects. The EEG power of beta band (p < .001) and gamma band (p < .001) was significantly higher in METH group than the control group. Taking the VR scenarios (Neutral versus METH-VR) as the main effects, the GSR, EEG power in delta, theta, and alpha bands in neutral scenario were significantly higher than in the METH-VR scenario (p < .001). The LR algorithm showed the highest specificity and sensitivity in distinguishing methamphetamine-dependent patients from healthy controls. CONCLUSION: The study shows the potential of using machine learning to distinguish methamphetamine-dependent patients from healthy subjects by using EEG and GSR data. The LR algorithm shows the best performance comparing with SVM and RF algorithm.