Publications by authors named "Anca Ialomiteanu"

Background: Biological sample collection and data linkage can expand the utility of population health surveys. The present study investigates factors associated with population health survey respondents' willingness to provide biological samples and personal health information.

Methods: Using data from the 2019 Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) Monitor survey (n = 2,827), we examined participants' willingness to provide blood samples, saliva samples, probabilistic linkage, and direct linkage with personal health information.

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Recognition of ADHD in the adult population is relatively recent. Epidemiological research examining the mental health impact of ADHD in adulthood is thus limited. The objective of this study was to examine whether adult ADHD symptoms are associated with psychological distress, hazardous drinking, and problem gambling, after controlling for traumatic brain injury and sociodemographic characteristics.

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Background: Understanding risk factors for driving under the influence of alcohol (DUIA) informs development of effective interventions. This study examined the association between ethnicity, immigration status, and DUIA, exploring psychological distress and hazardous drinking as additional contributors.

Method: Data were derived from the 2003-2011 cycles of the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) Monitor of 16,101 adults from Ontario, Canada.

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Background: Existing studies of attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), conduct disorder (CD), and substance use or substance use disorders have produced mixed results, with some identifying a direct link between ADHD and general or disordered substance use and others suggesting that comorbid CD may explain this relationship. Insufficient research has addressed the issue, which is particularly relevant in the context of the opioid crisis. This study examined the association of probable ADHD and childhood CD with self-reported opioid use in a general-population sample.

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Texting while driving (TWD) is considered a particularly hazardous form of distracted driving. It is highly prevalent among young drivers, but fewer studies of TWD among adult drivers exist and these prevalence rates may approach those of younger drivers. The effectiveness of measures to prevent distracted driving, and TWD specifically, is unclear.

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Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a common injury characterized by a change in brain function after an external blow to the head and is associated with substance abuse, psychological distress, risk-taking, and impulsivity. Convenience and clinical samples have also linked TBI to problem gambling, but have not ruled out confounding variables such as hazardous drinking and psychological distress. This study examines the relationship between TBI and moderate to severe problem gambling in a general population probability sample controlling for hazardous drinking and psychological distress.

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Research has shown that tobacco users have an increased risk of collisions compared to nonsmokers. Studies from 1967 through 2013 documented a crude relative risk of collision involvement of about 1.5 among smokers compared to nonsmokers.

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The objective of this study was to examine debt stress and its association with psychological distress and overall health. Data were derived from the 2014-2016 annual cycles of a cross-sectional telephone survey of the general population of adults 18 years of age and older within the province of Ontario, Canada. The present analyses focused on a pooled sample of 8045 adults.

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This study describes the association among lifetime traumatic brain injury (TBI) and past year hazardous/harmful drinking, as well as their unique and synergistic effects, on mental health problems and roadway aggression among Canadian adults. A cross-sectional sample of 6074 Ontario adults aged 18 years or older were surveyed between 2011 and 2013. TBI was defined as trauma to the head resulting in loss of consciousness or overnight hospitalization.

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Background: Motor vehicle collisions are an important contributor to prescription opioid use-related morbidity and mortality. The purpose of the current study was to estimate the prevalence of driving under the influence of prescription opioids (DUIPO) in Ontario, Canada, and to measure the association between this behaviour and the risk of a motor vehicle collision.

Methods: Data were based on telephone interviews with 7857 respondents who reported having driven in the past year.

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Objective: This study describes the association between history of lifetime traumatic brain injury (TBI) and current disabling functional restrictions among Ontario adults.

Setting And Design: A two-stage rolling cross-sectional sample of 6,048 adults aged 18 to 93 were interviewed by computer assisted telephone interviewing between 2011-2013 regarding their mental health and substance use in Ontario, Canada. TBI criteria were defined by loss of consciousness for minimum five minutes or at least one overnight hospitalization.

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Objective: Although most research on drugs and driving has focused on the use of alcohol and cannabis, research that has been conducted on cigarette smoking and collisions has found that smokers have an increased collision involvement. Studies dating from 1967 through 2013 have shown a crude relative risk of about 1.5 among smokers compared to nonsmokers.

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Objective: To investigate the prevalence of therapeutic cannabis use within a general population sample of adults and to describe various characteristics associated with use.

Methods: Data were derived from the 2013 and 2014 CAMH Monitor Survey of adults in Ontario, Canada. This repeated cross-sectional survey employed a regionally stratified design and utilized computer-assisted telephone interviewing.

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This study describes the association between history of traumatic brain injury (TBI) and childhood symptoms of conduct disorder (CD). Data were based on telephone interviews with 6048 respondents derived from the 2011-2013 cycles of a representative cross-sectional survey of adults aged 18+ years in Ontario, Canada. TBI was defined as loss of consciousness for at least 5min or overnight hospitalization due to injury symptoms.

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Objective: This study examined the association between roadway aggression and traumatic brain injury (TBI) among drivers and passengers who reside in the province of Ontario, Canada.

Methods: Data were based on a 3-year cumulated cross-sectional sample of 6,048 adults aged 18 years and older who were surveyed by telephone. The outcome in this study was road rage in the form of verbal/gestural or physical aggression toward other road users and/or their vehicle.

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Background: Rates of cannabis use differ around the world; in Ontario, the rate of use has been stable since about 2005. Understanding which population groups are at greater risk for problematic cannabis use can help reduce long-term health effects and service expenses. The aim of this study was to explore differences in cannabis use among Canadian adults of different ethnic origins living in Ontario.

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Background: While recreational cannabis use is common, medical cannabis programs have proliferated across North America, including a federal program in Canada. Few comparisons of medical and recreational cannabis users (RCUs) exist; this study compared these groups on key characteristics.

Methods: Data came from a community-recruited sample of formally approved medical cannabis users (MCUs; n = 53), and a sub-sample of recreational cannabis users (RCUs; n = 169) from a representative adult survey in Ontario (Canada).

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Background: Street racing has been identified as a significant public health concern, yet, little is known about the prevalence of this behaviour and its impact on collision risk. The current study was designed to address this dearth of knowledge by estimating the prevalence of street racing among the Ontario, Canada adult population, and examining its association to collision risk, controlling for demographics and other risk factors.

Methods: Data were based on telephone interviews with 11,263 respondents derived from the 2009-2014 cycles of the CAMH Monitor, an ongoing cross-sectional survey of adults aged 18+ years.

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Existent profiles of Medical Marijuana Program (MMP) participants indicate common and co-morbid chronic diseases, yet evidence on disability or functioning as well as comparisons with general populations are largely lacking. This study compared health, substance use, and functioning status among formally approved MMP participants with the general adult population in Ontario (Canada). A community-recruited sample (n = 53) of MMP participants was compared to a sub-sample (n = 510) of the representative Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) Monitor (2015 cycle) survey of Ontario general population adults (ages 18+) based on identical telephone-based interviews regarding substance use, health, and functioning measures.

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This research examines (1) the association between risk drinking and religious affiliation and (2) differences between religions for risk drinking among adults living in Ontario, Canada, for Christians, Buddhists, Sikhs, Muslims, Hindus, Jews, other religious groups and the non-religious. Data are based on telephone interviews with 16,596 respondents and are derived from multiple cycles (2005-2011) of the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health's (CAMH) Monitor survey, an ongoing cross-sectional survey of adults in Ontario, Canada, aged 18 years and older. Data were analysed using bivariate cross-tabulations, Mann-Whitney U nonparametric test and logistic regression.

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As older adults continue to make up a greater proportion of the Canadian population, it becomes more important to understand the implications that their leisure activities have for their physical and mental health. Gambling, in particular, is a form of leisure that is becoming more widely available and has important implications for the mental health and financial well-being of older adults. This study examines a large sample (2103) of casino-going Ontarian adults over the age of 55 and identifies those features of their gambling participation that are associated with problem gambling.

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Objective: This study describes the association between lifetime traumatic brain injury (TBI) and attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) among Canadian adults.

Method: A cross-sectional sample of 3993 Ontario adults aged 18 or older were surveyed by Computer Assisted Telephone Interviewing (CATI) throughout 2011 and 2012 as part of the CAMH Monitor, a rolling survey assessing the health, mental health and substance use of Ontario adults. TBI was defined as trauma to the head that resulted in loss of consciousness for at least five minutes or overnight hospitalization.

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This article examines prevalence and gender differences of alcohol use and risk drinking in a representative sample of Ontario adults. Data were drawn from the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) Monitor survey of Ontario adults aged 18 and older collected between January 2005 and December 2010. The prevalence of self-reported lifetime, current, and high-risk drinking were all higher among the Canadian and the European-origin groups compared with other ethnic groups.

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Objective: This study examines the associations between lifetime traumatic brain injury (TBI), driver aggression, and motor vehicle collisions among a population sample of adults who reside in the province of Ontario, Canada.

Method: A cross-sectional sample of 3993 Ontario adults, aged 18-97 were surveyed by telephone in 2011 and 2012 as part of Center for Addiction and Mental Health's ongoing representative survey of adult mental health and substance use in Canada. TBI was defined as trauma to the head that resulted in loss of consciousness for at least five minutes or overnight hospitalization.

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