PRESS-NEWS.org - Press Release Distribution
PRESS RELEASES DISTRIBUTION

Pairing up: the impact of treating alcohol use disorder and PTSD together

$3.5M grant supports clinical trial

Pairing up: the impact of treating alcohol use disorder and PTSD together
2023-04-20
(Press-News.org) A collaborative multi-site randomized controlled trial at the University of Houston and the Medical University of South Carolina is set to prove the effectiveness of treating alcohol use disorder (AUD) and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) together. 

It’s a one-two punch whose time has come. No integrative treatment combining Cognitive processing therapy (CPT) for PTSD and relapse prevention (RP) for AUD currently exists. 

“A substantial proportion of individuals with AUD also meet criteria for PTSD. The co-occurrence of AUD/PTSD is characterized by more severe symptomatology, greater functional impairment, increased suicide risk, and poorer treatment outcomes as compared to either disorder alone,” said Anka Vujanovic, professor of psychology and director of the Trauma and Stress Studies Center at the University of Houston. She and Sudie Back, professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at MUSC, have received a grant of $3,461,217 from the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) to conduct the randomized clinical trial. 

“Cognitive processing therapy for PTSD and relapse prevention for AUD are two of the most widely used and efficacious behavioral treatments for these conditions,” said Back. Vujanovic successfully developed and pilot tested a therapy manual that combines CPT with RP. “The preliminary data demonstrate safety, feasibility, high rates of retention and patient satisfaction,” said Back.   

The trial’s primary objective is to examine the efficacy of CPT-RP, as compared to RP alone, in reducing alcohol use frequency and quantity and PTSD symptom severity among individuals with current AUD/PTSD.  

The team will also evaluate behavior change on a daily basis using innovative mobile technology.  

“This study aligns closely with the mission of NIAAA in that it aims to produce maximally efficacious behavioral interventions for AUD and comorbid psychiatric disorders such as PTSD. The findings from this study will provide new information to advance the science of AUD/PTSD comorbidity and innovate clinical practice,” said Vujanovic.  

“The intervention to be tested is supported by promising preliminary data and a high level of enthusiasm from national providers, conferring strong potential for uptake in diverse clinical settings and delivery by a range of clinical providers,” Back said.  

The findings have the potential to open a new avenue of trauma-focused integrative treatment for AUD/PTSD and significantly enhance patient reach, retention and clinical outcomes, according to the team. 

END

[Attachments] See images for this press release:
Pairing up: the impact of treating alcohol use disorder and PTSD together Pairing up: the impact of treating alcohol use disorder and PTSD together 2 Pairing up: the impact of treating alcohol use disorder and PTSD together 3

ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

IU cancer researchers identify new target for breast cancer therapy

2023-04-20
INDIANAPOLIS—While trying to understand what initiates breast cells to become cancerous, researchers at the Vera Bradley Foundation Center for Breast Cancer Research at Indiana University Melvin and Bren Simon Comprehensive Cancer Center have identified a new target for breast cancer treatment. “When comparing healthy breast tissue and cancerous cells, we wanted to find out what is the earliest genomic change that happens to initiate the cancer,” said Harikrishna Nakshatri, PhD, the Marian J. Morrison professor of breast cancer research ...

Hungry eyes: Spiders lose vision when they're starving

Hungry eyes: Spiders lose vision when theyre starving
2023-04-20
Biologists at the University of Cincinnati discovered that underfed jumping spiders lose light-sensitive cells that are key to their vision. UC College of Arts and Sciences Professor Elke Buschbeck and her co-authors studied photoreceptors in the eyes of bold jumping spiders, tiny eight-legged predators found across North America. The little hunters rely on their keen vision to stalk prey. But researchers found that underfed spiders begin to lose photoreceptors that give them such good eyesight. Their findings could improve our understanding of ...

Cleveland Clinic research predicts cancer patients’ response to chemotherapy agent cisplatin

2023-04-20
Researchers at Cleveland Clinic have taken an important step in predicting which treatment will work for individual cancer patients. Using a gene signature developed from cell lines and human tissue, the research team demonstrated the ability to predict a patient’s response to the chemotherapy agent cisplatin, without relying on changes in the mutational status of a patient’s cancer. The study was recently published in NPJ Precision Oncology. In recent years, effective new cancer treatments have ...

Built to bounce back

Built to bounce back
2023-04-20
Search and rescue efforts following disasters like the massive earthquakes in Turkey and Syria are a race against time. Emergency response teams need to quickly identify voids or spaces in building rubble where survivors might be trapped, and before natural gas leaks, water main flooding or shifting concrete slabs take their toll. Advanced technology plays a vital role in these recovery operations. Thermal imaging equipment and sensitive listening devices are deployed to seek out signs of life. Small aerial ...

bioRxiv and PaperPlayer pilot a new feature to increase accessibility

2023-04-20
Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory announced today that its life sciences preprint server bioRxiv has partnered with PaperPlayer, a service for converting manuscripts into high-quality audio, to provide audio versions of preprint abstracts in the bioRxiv Neuroscience category. This new feature increases content accessibility and offers a way of obtaining information from preprints that’s an alternative to a screen. It is being piloted in the Neuroscience category to assess its value for preprint users. "This ...

AI system can generate novel proteins that meet structural design targets

2023-04-20
MIT researchers are using artificial intelligence to design new proteins that go beyond those found in nature. They developed machine-learning algorithms that can generate proteins with specific structural features, which could be used to make materials that have certain mechanical properties, like stiffness or elasticity. Such biologically inspired materials could potentially replace materials made from petroleum or ceramics, but with a much smaller carbon footprint. The researchers from MIT, the MIT-IBM Watson AI Lab, and Tufts University employed a generative model, which is the same type of machine-learning model architecture ...

Why are networks stable?

2023-04-20
A single species invades an ecosystem causing its collapse. A cyberattack on the power system causes a major breakdown. These type of events are always on our mind, yet they rarely result in such significant consequences. So how is it that these systems are so stable and resilient that they can withstand such external  disruptions? Indeed, these systems lack a central design or blueprint, and still, they exhibit exceptionally reliable functionality. In the early 70s the field of ecology was split on the question of whether biodiversity is a good or a bad thing for an ecosystem. In 1972 Sir Robert May showed, mathematically, that an increase in biodiversity causes less ecological ...

Trends in severe outcomes among patients hospitalized with COVID-19

2023-04-20
About The Study: The findings of this study of 55,000 adult and pediatric patients hospitalized with laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 in Canada suggest that COVID-19 vaccination is important to reduce the burden on the Canadian health care system as well as severe outcomes associated with COVID-19.  Authors: Robyn Mitchell, M.H.Sc., of the Public Health Agency of Canada in Ottawa, 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/jamanetworkopen.2023.9050) Editor’s ...

Association of social-ecological factors with delay in time to initiation of postoperative radiation therapy

2023-04-20
About The Study: In this study of 171 participants who received primary surgery and postoperative radiation for head and neck squamous cell carcinoma, lower levels of written health literacy were significantly associated with postoperative radiation delays when controlling for demographic and clinical factors. The addition of health literacy and the community-level area deprivation index improved the model’s prediction of postoperative radiation delay risk.  Authors: Tuleen Sawaf, B.S., of the University of Kansas Medical Center in Kansas City, 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/jamaoto.2023.0308) Editor’s ...

Chitin from consuming insects can help both gut microbiota and global health

Chitin from consuming insects can help both gut microbiota and global health
2023-04-20
Chitin (kai’tin) and healthy fats from insects appear to contribute to healthy gut microbiota and are strong sources of protein and nutrients, according to a paper co-authored by a Colorado State University researcher and published in Nature Food. Tiffany Weir, an associate professor in CSU’s Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition, co-authored the paper with the University of Wisconsin’s Valerie Stull. They pioneered human research on cricket consumption’s effect on gut microbiota. Weir said that her and Stull’s earlier research helped spawn Weir’s latest study of how cricket-derived chitin in designer chocolate patties may increase ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

Spring fatigue cannot be empirically proven

Do prostate cancer drugs interact with certain anticoagulants to increase bleeding and clotting risks?

Many patients want to talk about their faith. Neurologists often don't know how.

AI disclosure labels may do more harm than good

The ultra-high-energy neutrino may have begun its journey in blazars

Doubling of new prescriptions for ADHD medications among adults since start of COVID-19 pandemic

“Peculiar” ancient ancestor of the crocodile started life on four legs in adolescence before it began walking on two

AI can predict risk of serious heart disease from mammograms

New ultra-low-cost technique could slash the price of soft robotics

Increased connectivity in early Alzheimer’s is lowered by cancer drug in the lab

Study highlights stroke risk linked to recreational drugs, including among young users

Modeling brain aging and resilience over the lifespan reveals new individual factors

ESC launches guidelines for patients to empower women with cardiovascular disease to make informed pregnancy health decisions 

Towards tailor-made heat expansion-free materials for precision technology

New research delves into the potential for AI to improve radiology workflows and healthcare delivery

Rice selected to lead US Space Force Strategic Technology Institute 4

A new clue to how the body detects physical force

Climate projections warn 20% of Colombia’s cocoa-growing areas could be lost by 2050, but adaptation options remain

New poll: American Heart Association most trusted public health source after personal physician

New ethanol-assisted catalyst design dramatically improves low-temperature nitrogen oxide removal

New review highlights overlooked role of soil erosion in the global nitrogen cycle

Biochar type shapes how water moves through phosphorus rich vegetable soils

Why does the body deem some foods safe and others unsafe?

Report examines cancer care access for Native patients

New book examines how COVID-19 crisis entrenched inequality for women around the world

Evolved robots are born to run and refuse to die

Study finds shared genetic roots of MS across diverse ancestries

Endocrine Society elects Wu as 2027-2028 President

Broad pay ranges in job postings linked to fewer female applicants

How to make magnets act like graphene

[Press-News.org] Pairing up: the impact of treating alcohol use disorder and PTSD together
$3.5M grant supports clinical trial