Domestic and external violence, parental neglect, and social sanctions among crack users: A cross-sectional study exploring the role of gender.

Background: Substance Use Disorders are often associated with significant levels of domestic and external violence registered among abusers. This investigation aimed to evaluate the Domestic Violence Involvement (DVI) and related gender differences among Crack Cocaine Users in Brazil.

Methods: For this purpose, a secondary data analysis of a multicenter cross-sectional study involving 780 Crack Cocaine Users from 6 Brazilian capitals was performed.

Transgenerational Cycle of Traumatization and HIV Risk Exposure among Crack Users.

The aim of this manuscript is to understand the impact of childhood sexual abuse on the development of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) exposure. and parental neglect in crack cocaine users, considering the role of gender. This study is a secondary database analysis of a sample from a multicenter cross-sectional study with 715 crack cocaine users receiving outpatient treatment in public mental health networks in six Brazilian capitals.

Anger and substance abuse: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Objective: Conduct a systematic review and meta-analysis to evaluate levels of anger among substance users compared to non-user controls and to analyze the possible association between anger and psychoactive substance use (PSU).

Methods: The procedures of this review followed the Meta-Analyzes of Observational Studies in Epidemiology (MOOSE) and Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines. Four electronic databases (MEDLINE, EMBASE, BIREME, PsycINFO) were searched.

High rates of incarceration due to drug trafficking in the last decade in southern Brazil.

Introduction Drug-related crimes, especially drug trafficking, account for a large part of incarcerations not only in Brazil, but also worldwide. It is not clear whether the change in the drug law has contributed to the increase in the number of drug trafficking prisoners. Few studies have investigated gender differences and the growth of drug trafficking offenses in the Brazilian southern state of Rio Grande do Sul.

Re-traumatization Cycle: Sexual Abuse, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and Sexual Risk Behaviors among Club Drug Users.

Club drug users are high risk and vulnerable population for adverse drug-related consequences and sexual risk behaviors. Few investigations have addressed the possible interrelationship between early trauma and PTSD among young club drug using populations. Exposure to traumatic experiences - especially in childhood, has been linked to risk behaviors exposure and substance use disorder.

Depression, anxiety, hopelessness and quality of life in users of cocaine/crack in outpatient treatment.

Objective:: To identify symptoms of anxiety, depression, and feelings of hopelessness in patients in outpatient treatment for substance dependency and to test for correlations with various aspects of their quality of life.

Methods:: A cross-sectional study of a sample of 25 men in recuperation from substance dependency, selected by convenience. We assessed symptoms of depression (Beck Depression Inventory-II), anxiety (Beck Anxiety Inventory), hopelessness (Beck Hopelessness Scale), and quality of life (World Health Organization Quality of Life instrument-Abbreviated version [WHOQOL-Bref]), and also analyzed sociodemographic profile, substance abuse, and family history.

Cognition and functioning in bipolar depression.

Objectives: Depressive symptoms are associated with worse outcomes in patients with bipolar disorder (BD). However, scarce data are available regarding neurocognitive profiles across different areas of functioning among BD patients with moderate and severe depression. Our objective was to assess cognition and global functioning in a group of patients with bipolar depression.

Quality of life, social functioning, family structure, and treatment history associated with crack cocaine use in youth from the general population.

Objective: To assess the relationship between crack cocaine use and dimensions of quality of life and social functioning in young adults.

Methods: This was a cross-sectional, population-based study involving 1,560 participants in Pelotas, Brazil. Crack cocaine use and abuse were investigated using the Alcohol, Smoking and Substance Involvement Screening Test (ASSIST) inventory.

Does comorbid bipolar disorder increase neuropsychological impairment in children and adolescents with ADHD?

Objective: To assess differences in executive functioning between children and adolescents with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) comorbid or not with bipolar disorder (BD), and to study the neuropsychological profile of subjects with the comorbidity in a clinical sample from a developing country.

Method: Case-control study comparing 23 participants with BD + ADHD and 85 ADHD-only subjects aged 6 to 17 years old. Both groups were drug-free.

Violent and sexual behaviors and lifetime use of crack cocaine: a population-based study in Brazil.

Objective: To estimate the prevalence of lifetime use of crack cocaine and to assess associations with violent and sexual behaviors in young adults selected from the general population of Pelotas, Southern Brazil.

Methods: This cross-sectional population-based study included 1,560 participants aged 18-24 years. The use of alcohol and other substances, including crack cocaine, was assessed using the alcohol, smoking and substance involvement screening test.

Correlates of unprotected sex in a sample of young club drug users.

Objectives: To assess the demographic characteristics, psychiatric symptoms, substance use patterns, and sexual risk behaviors in a sample of club drug users to identify factors associated with unprotected sex during the 12 months prior to the interview.

Methods: This cross-sectional study employed the targeted sampling and ethnographic mapping approaches via face-to-face interviews conducted at bars and electronic music festivals using an adapted, semi-structured version of the Global Appraisal of Individual Needs questionnaire. The sample comprised 240 male and female young adults who had used ecstasy and/or LSD in the 90 days prior to the interview and who were not receiving treatment for alcohol or drug abuse.

Verbal memory impairment in healthy siblings of patients with schizophrenia.

Cognitive deficits have been recognized as a core feature of schizophrenia (SZ) and are present in most patients. Verbal memory (VM), working memory (WM), and executive function (EF) are domains commonly impaired in patients with SZ. These latter domains have been related to the genetic risk of the disorder characterizing as possible endophenotypes.

Peripheral toxicity in crack cocaine use disorders.

A growing body of evidence suggests that crack cocaine misuse has widespread systemic and cognitive consequences, but little attention has been given to its systemic pathophysiology. We report here changes in inflammation markers, oxidative damage and brain derived neurotrophic factor in a sample of outpatients with crack cocaine use disorders. Fifty-three outpatients were recruited for this cross-sectional study and matched with fifty control subjects.

Childhood trauma, impulsivity, and executive functioning in crack cocaine users.

Background: The use of crack cocaine is a major public health concern in Brazil and internationally. Recent data suggest that childhood trauma is associated with worse outcomes among cocaine users. This study had the objective of evaluating the relationship of childhood trauma with executive functioning and impulsivity in outpatients with crack cocaine use disorders.

Aripiprazole in children and adolescents with bipolar disorder comorbid with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder: a pilot randomized clinical trial.

Objective: To assess response to treatment with aripiprazole in children and adolescents with bipolar disorder comorbid with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

Method: Children and adolescents were extensively assessed according to DSM-IV criteria for bipolar disorder comorbid with ADHD (n = 710). Those with this comorbidity who were acutely manic or in mixed states were randomly assigned in a 6-week double-blind, placebo-controlled trial to aripiprazole (n = 18) or placebo (n = 25).