Pain response in heroin users: personality, abstinence, and modulation by benzodiazepines.

We compared cold-pain responses among male current opioid users with and without concurrent benzodiazepine use, long-term ex-users, and healthy controls. Forty-eight current opioid users (14 concurrently using benzodiazepines), 34 ex-users (abstinent for ≥1 y) and 63 controls received cold-pressor tests. Pain threshold (first reporting pain) and pain tolerance (total immersion time) were recorded.

Capturing children's response to parental conflict and making use of it.

To read this article's abstract in both Spanish and Mandarin Chinese, please visit the article's full-text page on Wiley InterScience (http://interscience.wiley.com/journal/famp).

Dopamine receptor D4 gene -521C/T polymorphism is associated with opioid dependence through cold-pain responses.

Heroin users exhibit abnormal pain sensitivity called opioid-induced hyperalgesia that may weaken their determination to abstain. The dopamine receptor D4 gene (DRD4) is associated with heroin dependence; one of its polymorphisms is a C/T variation 521 bp upstream to the gene (-521C/T). We investigated whether this polymorphism was related to opioid dependence through modulation of cold-pain responses.

Impulsivity in Hong Kong-Chinese club-drug users.

To investigate the relationship between personality, club-drug use and high-risk drug-related behaviour, 360 club-drug users and 303 non-drug users in Hong Kong were assessed on measures of two impulsivity dimensions, reward drive and rash impulsivity, and a related trait of punishment sensitivity. The most frequently used drugs were ketamine, ecstasy, and cannabis, with the majority of participants using two or more drugs on any one occasion. Club-drug users were more rash-impulsive and reward-driven, and less punishment-sensitive than non-drug users (p<0.

Cough mixture abuse as a novel cause of folate deficiency: a prospective, community-based, controlled study.

Cough mixture abuse has been reported to cause severe folate deficiency and neurological defects. We carried out a prospective case-controlled survey to confirm this association and define the incidence and severity of the problem. A total of 57 cough mixture abusers and 47 other substance abusers (controls) were studied.