Unique alcohol avoidance program is associated with lower death rates

24/7 program combines frequent testing with certain punishment

2023-03-01

(Press-News.org) A statewide alcohol-monitoring program that requires people arrested for drunk driving and other alcohol-involved offenses to be tested frequently for alcohol use can reduce the likelihood that participants die for several years after their involvement with the program, according to a new RAND Corporation study.

Analyzing results from South Dakota’s 24/7 Sobriety Program, researchers found that those arrested for drunk driving who participated in 24/7 Sobriety had on the order of a 50% lower risk of dying during the study period compared to those arrested for drunk driving who did not participate in the program..

The results are published in the latest edition of the journal JAMA Psychiatry.

“These findings add a public health dimension to the growing evidence that the 24/7 approach improves public safety by reducing rearrest,” said Nancy Nicosia, the study’s lead author and a senior economist at RAND, a nonprofit research organization. “We believe this is the first evidence that such programs may also improve health outcomes for those who are enrolled.”

Alcohol is the third-leading cause of preventable death in the US with alcohol-impaired driving alone claiming 11,654 lives in 2020 -- a 14% increase over the previous year.

The South Dakota 24/7 program is a public safety effort largely focused on those who are repeatedly arrested for alcohol-involved offenses. The program imposes very frequent alcohol testing along with swift but modest sanctions for those testing positive or missing a test -- typically a night or two in jail.

Past RAND studies have shown that the 24/7 program in South Dakota lowers the likelihood that participants will be rearrested or have probation revoked, as well as reducing county-level repeat DUI arrests and domestic violence arrests.

“We have also found evidence that 24/7 Sobriety improves impaired driving outcomes in other states,” said Beau Kilmer, a coauthor on the study and codirector of the RAND Drug Policy Research Center.

For the new study, researchers analyzed criminal history and mortality data for individuals arrested for driving under the influence of alcohol in South Dakota during 2004 to 2011. The sample included 11,827 people who participated in the 24/7 program and 48,834 nonparticipants.

Researchers used several statistical approaches to compare death rates between the two groups, with each adjusting for any differences between participants and nonparticipants. All of the methods showed a lower likelihood of death among those who participated in the 24/7 program as compared to those who did not.

Support for the study was provided by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism. Other authors of the study are Greg Midgette of the University of Maryland and Marika Suttorp-Booth of RAND.

Since 1989, the RAND Drug Policy Research Center has conducted research to help policymakers in the United States and throughout the world address issues involving alcohol and other drugs. In doing so, the center brings an objective and data-driven perspective to an often emotional and fractious policy arena.

END

ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Outcomes of women undergoing coronary artery bypass surgery

2023-03-01

About The Study: The results of this study of more than 1.2 million patients indicate that women remain at significantly higher risk for adverse outcomes following coronary artery bypass grafting and no significant improvement has been seen over the course of the last decade. Further investigation into the determinants of operative outcomes in women is urgently needed. Authors: Mario Gaudino, M.D., Ph.D., M.S.C.E., of Weill Cornell Medicine in New York, is the corresponding author. To access the embargoed study: Visit our For The Media website at this link https://media.jamanetwork.com/ (doi:10.1001/jamasurg.2022.8156) Editor’s Note: Please see the ...

Reexamining time from breast cancer diagnosis to surgery

2023-03-01

About The Study: This case series study using the data of 373,000 patients from the National Cancer Database found that time from breast cancer diagnosis to surgery of greater than eight weeks was associated with worse overall survival. Time to surgery of greater than eight weeks may partly be associated with disadvantageous social determinants of health. Authors: Heather B. Neuman, M.D., of the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health in Madison, is the corresponding author. To access the embargoed study: Visit our For The Media website at this link https://media.jamanetwork.com/ (doi:10.1001/jamasurg.2022.8388) Editor’s ...

Oldest human genome from southern Spain

2023-03-01

An international team of researchers has analysed ancient human DNA from several archaeological sites in Andalucía in southern Spain. The study reports on the oldest genome to date from Cueva del Malalmuerzo in southern Spain, as well as the 7,000 to 5,000-year-old genomes of early farmers from other well-known sites, such as Cueva de Ardales. The Iberian Peninsula plays an important role in the reconstruction of human population history. As a geographic cul-de-sac in the southwest of Europe, it is on one hand considered a refuge during the last Ice Age with its drastic temperature fluctuations. On the other hand, it may have been one of the starting points for the recolonisation ...

The counting of nine billion trees could help manage climate credits and nature restoration

2023-03-01

Researchers from the University of Copenhagen and NASA have developed a method that has now mapped several billion trees and their carbon uptake in Africa’s Sahel region. In the future, the method could be used to monitor whether climate credit purchases have a positive effect on the number of trees and whether nature restoration is working. The purchase of indulgences for CO2 emissions is gaining steam among global corporations. Carbon offset credits allow companies to emit a given amount of CO2 in exchange for the greenhouse gas being neutralized elsewhere, in the form of trees planted or left unfelled. But with billions upon billions of trees across the planet, keeping track ...

New study unveils epigenetic ‘traffic lights’ controlling stop and go for gene activity

2023-03-01

A major new study in the journal Nature reveals a ‘traffic light’ mechanism controlling genetic activity within cells – a system which could potentially be targeted by cancer drugs already in development. The research describes how ‘epigenetic’ changes to the structure of DNA can act as a stop-go signal in determining whether a gene should be read. Unlike our genetic make-up, which is well understood, the world of epigenetics is still largely unexplored and referred to as the ‘dark matter’ of the genome. But the new findings answer a fundamental and longstanding question – how epigenetic proteins regulate the ...

New NASA DART data prove viability of asteroid deflection as planetary defense strategy

2023-03-01

NASA’s Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) was Earth’s first attempt at launching a spacecraft to intentionally collide with and deflect an asteroid as a planetary defense technique. On September 26, 2022, the DART spacecraft collided with a small asteroid moon called Dimorphos, which orbits a larger asteroid called Didymos. Neither asteroid posed a threat to Earth, but they represented similar celestial bodies that could one day approach and endanger the planet. In four papers published in the journal Nature on ...

Insilico Medicine’s Generative AI Pioneer Alex Zhavoronkov, PhD at Lab of the Future March 9

2023-03-01

Alex Zhavoronkov, PhD, a pioneer of generative artificial intelligence (AI) for biology and chemistry, and founder and CEO of Insilico Medicine (“Insilico”) will present at the Lab of the Future Congress at the Renaissance Boston Waterfront Hotel on March 9, 2pm ET. In a talk titled “Novel Target Discovery and Molecular Design Using AI,” Dr. Zhavoronkov will share the breakthroughs and discoveries that have made Insilico Medicine a leader in generative AI drug discovery. This includes ...

Review of studies finds disparity in presumptive chlamydia and gonorrhea treatment rates despite CDC guidelines

2023-03-01

INDIANAPOLIS – A Regenstrief Institute-led review of studies on proactive health services for chlamydia and gonorrhea has found that rates of presumptive treatment -- antibiotics prior to laboratory test confirmation -- varies widely. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends presumptive treatment of individuals with symptoms of or known contact with these infections to decrease likelihood of secondary infections as well as poor outcomes. The healthcare settings of all 18 of the studies reviewed were within the U.S. and patients were age 14 and older. Presumptive treatment rates were found to ...

Chinese Medical Journal study identifies major risk factors of pulmonary tuberculosis in patients with pneumoconiosis in China

2023-03-01

Pneumoconiosis comprises a group of heterogeneous lung diseases resulting from the inhalation of mineral dust. It is an occupational hazard with significant economic and social implications. Notably, patients with pneumoconiosis have an elevated risk of contracting pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB). Unfortunately, pneumoconiosis has a strong presence in China. However, extensive population-based studies on the prevalence of PTB in patients with pneumoconiosis have not been conducted in China since almost three decades. To bridge this gap, a team of ...

National Comprehensive Cancer Network updates annual conference with new in-person venue, hybrid format, expert-led sessions, highlighted research perspectives, and small-group conversations

2023-03-01

PLYMOUTH MEETING, PA [March 1, 2023] — The National Comprehensive Cancer Network® (NCCN®) today announced the NCCN 2023 Annual Conference will debut a new hybrid format, including in-person events at a new venue. This marks the first time in three years that this premier oncology meeting will be held in-person, and the first-ever time at the Orlando World Center Marriott, starting on March 31. “We’ve heard from many people who learn better by being in the ‘room where it happens,’” said Robert W. ...

Unique alcohol avoidance program is associated with lower death rates

ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES: