Anika A. H. Alvanzo

We investigated the impact of stressful life events (SLEs) for males and females on transitions in problematic alcohol involvement, both progression and recovery, over a 3-year interval.Participant...

Journal of Medical Internet Research - International Scientific Journal for Medical Research, Information and Communication on the Internet #Preprint #PeerReviewMe: Warning: This is a unreviewed preprint. Readers are warned that the document has not been peer-reviewed by expert/patient reviewers or an academic editor, may contain misleading claims, and is likely to undergo changes before final publication, if accepted, or may have been rejected/withdrawn. Readers with interest and expertise are encouraged to sign up as peer-reviewer, if the paper is within an open peer-review period. Please cite this preprint only for review purposes or for grant applications and CVs (if you are the author). Background: Information and communication technologies (ICT) offer potential for delivering healthcare interventions to medically underserved populations. However, most studies on ICT use and acceptability for health education and interventions have been conducted in clinical settings. Objective: The aim of this study was to examine access to and use of cell phone and computers as well as acceptability of ICT to deliver behavioral health information among a community sample of urban, predominately Black women. Methods: Participants (N=220) were recruited from hair salons and social service centers and completed audio-computer assisted self-interviews. Results: The majority (96%) reported at least weekly cell phone use, of which 89% used smartphones; 62% reported at least weekly computer use. Fifty-two percent and 39% used cell phones or computers, respectively, to access health and/or safety information weekly or more frequently. Approximately half reported interest in receiving information about stress management (51% - 56%) or alcohol and health (45 - 46%) via ICT. Smartphone ownership was associated with younger age (OR: 0.92, CI: 0.87-0.97) and employment (OR: 5.12, CI: 1.05-24.95). Accessing health and safety information weekly by phone was associated with younger age (OR: 0.96, CI: 0.94-0.99) and inversely associated with higher income (OR: 0.42, CI: 0.20-0.92). Conclusions: Our findings suggest that ICT use, particularly smartphone use, is pervasive among Black women in urban nonclinical settings and that ICT is an acceptable modality for delivering health information to this population. Further exploration of the acceptability, feasibility, and effectiveness of using ICT to disseminate behavioral health education and intervention is warranted. Clinical Trial: NA

BACKGROUND Information and communication technologies (ICT) offer potential for delivering health care interventions to low socioeconomic populations who often face barriers in accessing health care. However, most studies on ICT for health education and interventions have been conducted in clinical settings. OBJECTIVE The aim of this study was to examine access to and use of mobile phones and computers, as well as interest in, using ICT for receipt of behavioral health information among a community sample of urban, predominately black, women with low socioeconomic status. METHODS Participants (N=220) were recruited from hair salons and social service centers and completed audio-computer assisted self-interviews. RESULTS The majority of the participants (96%, 212/220) reported use of a mobile phone at least weekly, of which 89% (189/212) used smartphones and 62% (98/220) reported computer use at least weekly. Of the women included in the study, 52% (107/206) reported using a mobile phone and 39% (74/188) reported using a computer to access health and/or safety information at least weekly. Approximately half of the women expressed an interest in receiving information about stress management (51%-56%) or alcohol and health (45%-46%) via ICT. Smartphone ownership was associated with younger age (odds ratio, OR, 0.92, 95% CI 0.87-0.97) and employment (OR 5.12, 95% CI 1.05-24.95). Accessing health and safety information weekly by phone was associated with younger age (OR 0.96, 95% CI 0.94-0.99) and inversely associated with higher income (OR: 0.42, CI: 0.20-0.92). CONCLUSIONS Our findings suggest that ICT use, particularly smartphone use, is pervasive among predominantly black women with low socioeconomic status in urban, nonclinical settings. These results show that ICT is a promising modality for delivering health information to this population. Further exploration of the acceptability, feasibility, and effectiveness of using ICT to disseminate behavioral health education and intervention is warranted. CLINICALTRIAL NA

The aim of this study was to examine the relationship between family history of alcohol use disorder and striatal dopamine using positron emission tomography imaging. Participants were 84 healthy, 18‐ to 30‐year‐old, social drinkers recruited via fliers and newspaper advertisements. At assessment, participants completed measures of lifetime personal and family substance use and psychiatric symptoms. Participants underwent two consecutive positron emission tomography scans using the D₂/D₃ dopamine receptor radioligand [¹¹C]raclopride. Scans were preceded by intravenous saline and amphetamine 0.3 mg/kg, providing measures of baseline [¹¹C]raclopride binding potential (BP_ND) and change in [¹¹C]raclopride (ΔBP_ND). Subjective ratings of stimulant drug effects were collected during scans. Subjects were classified as family history positive (FHP) if they reported any first‐degree relative with alcohol use disorder (AUD) and family history negative (FHN) if no first‐degree relatives had history of AUD. Participants were predominantly White (69.0 percent) and male (62.1 percent). Baseline [¹¹C]raclopride BP_ND was generally higher in FHP compared with FHN subjects across striatal subdivisions. There were no differences in ΔBP_ND across regions. Negative subjective drug effects were more pronounced in FHP than in FHN subjects. While FHN subjects evidenced the expected positive relationship between ΔBP_ND and positive subjective drug effects, this relationship was disrupted in FHP subjects. There are key differences in dopamine status and subjective stimulant drug experiences as a function of family AUD history. These findings have important implications for understanding risk for AUD development in FHP offspring.

Objective: The goal of this study was to describe onset of comorbid anxiety disorders and alcohol dependence based on a large national survey of the U.S. adult population and to explore and describe these patterns by gender. Methods: Using Wave 1 of the National Epidemiologic Survey on Alcohol and Related Conditions (NESARC) data, we compared age at onset and temporal ordering of onset of comorbid alcohol dependence and anxiety disorders. Analyses were stratified by gender. Mean ages at onset were calculated, and Wald F-tests were used to assess differences in ages at onset, accounting for the complex survey design of the NESARC. Weighted estimates were used, adjusted to be representative of the U.S. population on various sociodemographic variables based on the 2000 Decennial Census. Results: Differences in temporal ordering were observed but varied by disorder combination. The majority (65%) had a primary (earliest onset) anxiety disorder, while the remaining 35% had a primary alcohol dependence diagnosis. Age at onset for some individuals with an anxiety disorder comorbid with alcohol dependence was earlier than for those with an anxiety disorder alone. Among individuals with comorbid social phobia and alcohol dependence and with comorbid specific phobia and alcohol dependence, it was more common to experience anxiety disorder as the primary diagnosis. Conversely, among individuals with comorbid panic disorder and alcohol dependence and with generalized anxiety disorder and alcohol dependence, it was more common to experience alcohol dependence as the primary diagnosis. Women were more likely to report having multiple comorbid anxiety disorders. No gender differences were found in terms of age at onset or temporal ordering of onset of comorbid disorders. Conclusions: Subsets of individuals with comorbid disorders exist, some whose primary diagnosis is alcohol dependence, and a majority of individuals whose primary diagnosis is an anxiety disorder with significant variability in age and temporal ordering of onset and few gender differences. Improved understanding of patterns of comorbidity and lag time between the onsets of specific disorders may enable us to identify potential groups for early intervention.