Low sensitivity to, and craving for, alcohol in naturalistic and laboratory settings

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Constantine James Trela
Keyword(s):  
Alcohol Use ◽  
Alcohol Use Disorder ◽  
Drinking Behavior ◽  
Clinical Population ◽  
Lower Sensitivity ◽  
Cue Exposure ◽  
Alcohol Sensitivity ◽  
Incentive Sensitization ◽  
Established Risk Factor ◽  
Low Sensitivity

[ACCESS RESTRICTED TO THE UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI AT REQUEST OF AUTHOR.] Low sensitivity to alcohol is a well-established risk factor for the development of an alcohol use disorder. This risk is transmitted along several routes included, but not limited to, differences in alcohol expectancies, association with heavier drinking peers, and differences in motivations for drinking. A recent line of inquiry drawing on the Incentive Sensitization Theory of Addiction has emerged as another potential factor through which alcohol sensitivity interfaces with alcohol use disorder. The Incentive Sensitization Theory of Addiction posits that formerly neutral cues become imbued with incentive salience through their repeated pairing with drug use and become highly sought after in their own right. Psychophysiological laboratory work has produced promising results that suggest that this process is stronger for low sensitivity drinkers relative to their higher sensitivity peers. The present work attempts to extend these laboratory results into drinkers' natural environment. Participants completed a 10-day period of Ecological Momentary Assessment where they reported on their exposure to cues for alcohol use, levels of craving for alcohol, and their use of alcohol. Results indicated that lower sensitivity drinkers were exposed to alcohol cues more frequently, were more likely to drink, and to drink more heavily when drinking. Cue exposure was a robust predictor of momentary craving, which in turn was a predictor of the likelihood of drinking and marginally associated with the heaviness of drinking. Contrary to hypotheses, alcohol sensitivity was not a moderator of any associations between cue exposure and drinking or craving and drinking. Despite the lack of the expected moderating effects of alcohol sensitivity, the results indicate that craving is a substantial predictor for drinking behavior in an at-risk population. This association between craving and drinking in the "real world" in a non-clinical population has only been rarely documented previously and presents an exciting avenue for continued research.

scholarly journals Behavioural cue reactivity to alcohol and non-alcohol-related stimuli among individuals with severe alcohol use disorder: an fMRI study with a visual task

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shou Fukushima ◽  
Hironori Kuga ◽  
Naoya Oribe ◽  
Takeo Mutou ◽  
Takefumi Yuzuriha ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Alcohol Use ◽  
Alcohol Use Disorder ◽  
Brain Activity ◽  
Cue Reactivity ◽  
Drinking Behavior ◽  
Significant Negative Correlation ◽  
Blood Oxygen Level Dependent ◽  
Posterior Cingulate Cortex ◽  
Alcoholic Beverages ◽  
Bold Responses

AbstractPatients with alcohol use disorder (AUD) have difficulties controlling alcohol cravings and thus exhibit increased use and earlier relapse. Although patients tend to respond more strongly to alcohol-related images compared with non-alcohol-related images, few researchers examined the factors that modulate cravings. Here, we examined whole-brain blood oxygen level-dependent (BOLD) responses to behavioural cues in individuals with AUD and healthy controls (HCs). The participants included 24 patients with severe AUD and 15 HCs. We presented four beverage images (juice, drinking juice, sake, and drinking sake) and compared participant BOLD responses between the two groups. Multiple comparisons revealed that the AUD group had lower BOLD responses compared with the HC group to images of drinking juice in the left precuneus (p = 0.036) and the left posterior cingulate cortex (PCC) (p = 0.044) and higher BOLD responses to images of drinking sake in the left PCC (p = 0.044). Furthermore, compared to the HCs, the AUD patients had decreased BOLD responses associated with cue reactivity to drinking juice in the left precuneus during the period from 15 to 18 s (p = 0.004, df = 37) and 18 to 21 s (p = 0.002, df = 37). Using the Spearman correlation, we found a significant negative correlation between BOLD responses in the left PCC of the AUD patients and Mini–Mental State Examination (MMSE) scores (r = −0.619, p = 0.001). Our findings suggest that HCs and severe AUD patients differ in their responses not to images of alcoholic beverages but those related to alcohol drinking behavior. Thus, these patients appear to have different patterns of brain activity. This information may aid clinicians in developing treatments for patients with AUD.

scholarly journals Alcohol Sensitivity as an Endophenotype of Alcohol Use Disorder: Exploring Its Translational Utility between Rodents and Humans

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (10) ◽  
pp. 725
Author(s):  
Clarissa C. Parker ◽  
Ryan Lusk ◽  
Laura M. Saba
Keyword(s):  
Alcohol Use ◽  
Translational Research ◽  
Alcohol Use Disorder ◽  
Genetic Research ◽  
Biological Pathways ◽  
Rodent Models ◽  
Alcohol Sensitivity ◽  
Diagnostic Categories ◽  
Component Traits ◽  
Molecular Aspects

Alcohol use disorder (AUD) is a complex, chronic, relapsing disorder with multiple interacting genetic and environmental influences. Numerous studies have verified the influence of genetics on AUD, yet the underlying biological pathways remain unknown. One strategy to interrogate complex diseases is the use of endophenotypes, which deconstruct current diagnostic categories into component traits that may be more amenable to genetic research. In this review, we explore how an endophenotype such as sensitivity to alcohol can be used in conjunction with rodent models to provide mechanistic insights into AUD. We evaluate three alcohol sensitivity endophenotypes (stimulation, intoxication, and aversion) for their translatability across human and rodent research by examining the underlying neurobiology and its relationship to consumption and AUD. We show examples in which results gleaned from rodents are successfully integrated with information from human studies to gain insight in the genetic underpinnings of AUD and AUD-related endophenotypes. Finally, we identify areas for future translational research that could greatly expand our knowledge of the biological and molecular aspects of the transition to AUD with the broad hope of finding better ways to treat this devastating disorder.

scholarly journals The role of alcohol response phenotypes in the risk for alcohol use disorder

BJPsych Open ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 5 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrea C. King ◽  
Dingcai Cao ◽  
Harriet deWit ◽  
Sean J. O'Connor ◽  
Deborah S. Hasin
Keyword(s):  
Alcohol Use ◽  
Alcohol Use Disorder ◽  
High Sensitivity ◽  
Lower Alcohol ◽  
Response Phenotype ◽  
Heavy Alcohol Use ◽  
Alcohol Response ◽  
Low Sensitivity ◽  
Health Burdens

Summary Heavy alcohol use is pervasive and one of our most significant global health burdens. Early theories posited that certain alcohol response phenotypes, notably low sensitivity to alcohol (‘low-level response’) imparts risk for alcohol use disorder (AUD). However, other theories, and newer measures of subjective alcohol responses, have challenged that contention and argued that high sensitivity to some alcohol effects are equally important for AUD risk. This study presents results of a unique longitudinal study in 294 young adult non-dependent drinkers examined with alcohol and placebo testing in the laboratory at initial enrolment and repeated 5 years later, with regular follow-up intervals assessing AUD (trial registration: http://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT00961792). Findings showed that alcohol sedation was negatively correlated with stimulation across the breath alcohol curve and at initial and re-examination testing. A higher rather than lower alcohol response phenotype was predictive of future AUD. The findings underscore a new understanding of factors increasing vulnerability to AUD.

scholarly journals Predictors of Changes in Alcohol Craving Levels during a Virtual Reality Cue Exposure Treatment among Patients with Alcohol Use Disorder

2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (9) ◽  
pp. 3018
Author(s):  
Olga Hernández-Serrano ◽  
Alexandra Ghiţă ◽  
Natàlia Figueras-Puigderrajols ◽  
Jolanda Fernández-Ruiz ◽  
Miquel Monras ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Virtual Reality ◽  
Alcohol Use ◽  
Alcohol Use Disorder ◽  
Illicit Drugs ◽  
Cue Exposure ◽  
Treatment As Usual ◽  
Alcohol Craving ◽  
Predictive Variables ◽  
Post Test ◽  
Civil Status

Background/Objective: Determining the predictive variables associated with levels of alcohol craving can ease the identification of patients who can benefit from treatments. This study aimed to describe changes (improvement or no change/deterioration) in alcohol craving levels and explore the predictors of these changes from admission to discharge in outpatients with alcohol use disorder (AUD) undergoing treatment-as-usual (TAU), or treatment-as-usual supplemented with virtual reality cue-exposure therapy (TAU + VR-CET). Method: A prospective cohort study was conducted amongst 42 outpatients with AUD (n = 15 TAU + VR-CET and n = 27 TAU) from a clinical setting. Changes in the levels of alcohol craving between admission and discharge were assessed with the Multidimensional Alcohol Craving Scale. Sociodemographic characteristics (age, gender, education, and socioeconomic and civil status), cognitive-affective behavioral patterns (AUD severity, abstinence duration, psychiatric comorbidity, state anxiety, attentional bias, and substance use), and type of treatment (TAU + VR-CET and only TAU) were also evaluated. Results: The TAU + VR-CET group showed greater changes of improvement in the levels of alcohol craving than the TAU group (χ2 = 10.996; p = 0.001). Intragroup changes in alcohol craving from pre to post-treatment were significant in the TAU + VR-CET group (χ2 = 13.818; p = 0.003) but not within the TAU group (χ2 = 2.349; p = 0.503). The odds of an improvement in any of the craving levels between pre- and post-test was 18.18 (1/0.055) times higher in the TAU + VR-CET group with respect to the TAU group. The use of illicit drugs in the month prior to the test increased the odds of having a positive change by 18.18 (1/0.055) with respect to not having consumed. Conclusions: Including VR-CET in TAU programs may provide benefits in the treatment of AUDs mainly among patients with intense alcohol craving and individuals having used illicit substances prior to treatment.

scholarly journals Family alcohol use, rather than childhood trauma, is more likely to cause male alcohol use disorder: findings from a case-control study in northern China

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Xu Chen ◽  
Yunmeng Pan ◽  
Peiru Xu ◽  
Yi Huang ◽  
Nan Li ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Alcohol Use ◽  
Childhood Trauma ◽  
Emotional Abuse ◽  
Alcohol Use Disorder ◽  
Protective Factor ◽  
Case Control Study ◽  
Drinking Behavior ◽  
Case Control ◽  
Increased Risk ◽  
Control Study

Abstract Objective To explore the influence of childhood trauma and family alcohol use on male alcohol use disorder. Methods We conducted a case-control study using Childhood Trauma Questionnaire (CTQ) and a structured interview involving 129 men with alcohol use disorder and 129 healthy male volunteers. The two groups were compared in terms of childhood trauma, parental drinking behavior, and attitudes toward childhood drinking. Results Patients showed higher scores of CTQ than controls on childhood trauma experiences, including on the subscales of physical abuse, emotional abuse, sexual abuse, and emotional neglect. Higher proportions of patients than controls had fathers who drank seven or more times a week, and had mothers who were opposed to childhood drinking. Conversely, a smaller proportion of patients than controls had fathers who opposed childhood drinking. Patients were more likely than controls to have been induced to drink as children. Logistic regression analysis identified three risk factors for alcohol use disorder: induced drinking during childhood [odds ratio (OR) 6.09, 95% confidence interval (CI) 2.56–14.51], the father’s weekly alcohol consumption during the respondent’s childhood (OR 4.40, 95%CI 2.94–6.58) and history of smoking (OR 3.39, 95%CI 1.48–7.77). Conversely, more years of education were a protective factor against alcohol use disorder (OR 0.88, 95% CI 0.78–0.99). Conclusions Men whose fathers drank frequently during their childhood and were encouraged to drink may be at increased risk of alcohol use disorder in adulthood. In fact these factors of family alcohol use appear to increase risk of alcohol use disorder among adult men more than exposure to childhood trauma does.

scholarly journals Getting to the Heart of Low Sensitivity to Alcohol: Context Moderates Low Cardiovascular Response to Alcohol in Persons With a Family History of Alcohol Use Disorder

2020 ◽  
Vol 44 (3) ◽  
pp. 589-599
Author(s):  
Marsha E. Bates ◽  
Eun‐Young Mun ◽  
Jennifer F. Buckman ◽  
Evgeny Vaschillo ◽  
Bronya Vaschillo ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Family History ◽  
Alcohol Use ◽  
Alcohol Use Disorder ◽  
Cardiovascular Response ◽  
History Of ◽  
Low Sensitivity
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