Parental versus non-parental-directed donation: an 11-year experience of infectious disease testing at a pediatric tertiary care blood donor center.

Background: Directed donation is associated with a higher prevalence of donations that are positive for infectious disease markers; however, little is known about the positive rates among parental-directed, non-parental-directed, and allogeneic donations.

Study Design And Methods: We reviewed blood-collection records from January 1997 through December 2008, including infectious disease results, among parental, non-parental, and community donations. Infectious disease rates were compared by Mann-Whitney U test.

Blood Product Utilization Among Trauma and Nontrauma Massive Transfusion Protocols at an Urban Academic Medical Center.

Background: Hospital-wide massive transfusion protocols (MTPs) primarily designed for trauma patients may lead to excess blood products being prepared for nontrauma patients. This study characterized blood product utilization among distinct trauma and nontrauma MTPs at a large, urban academic medical center.

Methods: A retrospective study of blood product utilization was conducted in patients who required an MTP activation between January 2011 and December 2015 at an urban academic medical center.

The potential utility of drinking motive questions to screen at-risk drinking in socially anxious patients.

Background: Drinking motives are thought to be important mediators of the relationship between social anxiety and alcohol use. This project evaluates whether specific drinking motives accurately reflect alcohol dependence. If so, brief questions about drinking motives could serve as valuable alcohol screening tools with socially anxious patients.

An online alcohol and oral health curriculum for dental students.

Regular heavy alcohol use can cause or worsen several oral health disorders and is associated with complications during and after dental procedures. Dental student education should provide detailed knowledge of these issues together with skills needed to detect and counsel patients with unhealthy drinking patterns. This project was designed to develop and evaluate a five-module, online program to teach dental students about alcohol and oral health, systemic and oral biological effects of heavy drinking, required changes to treatment protocols for heavy drinkers, reliable methods of alcohol screening, and ways to provide heavy drinkers with brief interventions.

Organizational attributes and screening and brief intervention in primary care.

Overconsumption of alcohol is well known to lead to numerous health and social problems. Prevalence studies of United States adults found that 20% of patients meet criteria for an alcohol use disorder. Routine screening for alcohol use is recommended in primary care settings, yet little is known about the organizational factors that are related to successful implementation of screening and brief intervention (SBI) and treatment in these settings.

Integration and sustainability of alcohol screening, brief intervention, and pharmacotherapy in primary care settings.

Objective: At-risk drinking and alcohol use disorders are common in primary care and may adversely affect the treatment of patients with diabetes and/or hypertension. The purpose of this article is to report the impact of dissemination of a practice-based quality improvement approach (Practice Partner Research Network-Translating Research into Practice [PPRNet-TRIP]) on alcohol screening, brief intervention for at-risk drinking and alcohol use disorders, and medications for alcohol use disorders in primary care practices.

Method: Nineteen primary care practices from 15 states representing 26,005 patients with diabetes and/or hypertension participated in a group-randomized trial (early intervention vs.

Treating individuals with social anxiety disorder and at-risk drinking: phasing in a brief alcohol intervention following paroxetine.

Paroxetine alone is not sufficient to decrease alcohol use in socially anxious alcoholics seeking anxiety treatment. We tested the hypothesis that adding a brief-alcohol-intervention (BI) to paroxetine would decrease alcohol use. All subjects (N=83) had a diagnosis of social anxiety disorder, endorsed drinking to cope with anxiety, were NIAAA-defined at-risk drinkers, and were randomized to either paroxetine alone, or paroxetine plus BI.

Severity of anxiety in mental health versus addiction treatment settings when social anxiety and substance abuse are comorbid.

There is increasing interest in the co-occurrence of social anxiety and addiction. Each investigation has a specific vantage point, e.g.

Michel Hersen and the development of social skills training: historical perspective of an academic scholar and pioneer.

As a distinguished scholar over the past 45 years, Michel Hersen has left an indelible mark on the field of behavior therapy and clinical psychology. One of his most enduring legacies is his early research work in the area of social skills assessment and training, with special attention to assertiveness training. His basic analogue and clinical outcome studies have served as essential building blocks for current evidence-based treatments.

Client attitudes toward alcohol use self-report.

Because psychiatric illnesses and problematic alcohol use frequently co-occur and heavy alcohol use can exacerbate depression and anxiety, mental health clinicians should perform alcohol-use screenings. The aim of this study was to determine if psychiatric patients would be accepting of their mental health clinician screening them for heavy alcohol use. Using a written survey, patients rated their levels of agreement with 9 statements regarding opinions about alcohol screening by their mental-health providers.

Methamphetamine abuse and oral health: a pilot study of "meth mouth".

Abuse of methamphetamine (meth), a potent central nervous system stimulant, has been associated with significant dental disease. Current descriptions of "meth mouth" are limited in their scope and fail to illuminate the potential pathogenic mechanisms of meth for oral disease. The purpose of this pilot study was to characterize the oral health of subjects with a history of meth abuse as compared to nonabusing control subjects.

Preliminary development and evaluation of online tobacco and alcohol modules for dental students.

Tobacco use and heavy alcohol consumption are major risk factors for the development of oral and pharyngeal cancer (OPC). Detection and modification of these risks by dentists are keys in preventing OPC. While dentists are encouraged to screen patients for tobacco and alcohol use and educate them about the oral health risks they pose, dental students receive little formalized training in this area.

Medical treatment of alcohol dependence: a systematic review.

Objective: To summarize published data on pharmacologic treatments for alcohol dependence alone and in combination with brief psychosocial therapies that may be feasible for primary care and specialty medical settings.

Methods: We conducted electronic searches of published original research articles and reviews in MEDLINE, SCOPUS, CINAHL, Embase, and PsychINFO. In addition, hand searches of reference lists of review articles, supplemental searches of internet references and contacts with experts in the field were conducted.

Wire tethering or 'bowstringing' as a long-term hardware-related complication of deep brain stimulation.

Background: Widely reported long-term complications following implantation of deep brain stimulation (DBS) hardware include breakage of electrode leads, internal pulse generator (IPG) failure, skin erosions and infection. Here we report on a rarely described problem that arises from formation of scar tissue adhesions around the DBS extension wire(s). Over time, this scar tissue can become tight and pronounced, protruding noticeably beneath the skin ('bowstringing' in reference to its tight bow-like appearance) and leading to significant limitation of movement and discomfort.

Preliminary evaluation of phosphatidylethanol and alcohol consumption in patients with liver disease and hypertension.

Aims: The goal of this preliminary study was to evaluate the relationship between blood phosphatidylethanol (PEth) and recent drinking in patients with liver disease and hypertension.

Methods: Twenty-one patients with liver disease and 21 patients with essential hypertension were recruited at an academic medical center. Alcohol consumption was estimated using validated self-report methods, and blood PEth was measured by HPLC-MS/MS at a contracted laboratory.

Blood pressure reduction during treatment for alcohol dependence: results from the Combining Medications and Behavioral Interventions for Alcoholism (COMBINE) study.

Aims: Heavy drinking is associated with hypertension. This study evaluated blood pressure changes occurring during treatment for alcohol dependence.

Participants: Subjects included 1383 people participating in the Combining Medications and Behavioral Interventions for Alcoholism (COMBINE) study, a large multi-center treatment study for alcohol dependence.

Febrile myoclonus: an underreported, benign condition in infancy often misinterpreted as febrile seizures.

Massive myoclonic jerks, often presenting in a dramatic fashion during a febrile illness, have rarely been reported and have usually been related to as febrile seizures. Febrile myoclonus is usually a benign phenomenon with no neurological sequelae. However, it may be impressive enough to provoke unnecessary diagnostic workup and treatment in these patients.

Prevalence of problem drinking and characteristics of a single-question screen.

Hazardous drinking and alcohol use disorders (i.e, abuse and dependence) are common in Emergency Departments (EDs). This study examined 1) the prevalence of these conditions among ED patients and 2) characteristics of a single screening question (having consumed at least five drinks for males or four for females during a single day).

Alcohol screening and brief counseling in a primary care hypertensive population: a quality improvement intervention.

Aims: To determine the effect of an intervention to improve alcohol screening and brief counseling for hypertensive patients in primary care.

Design: Two-year randomized, controlled trial.

Setting/participants: Twenty-one primary care practices across the United States with a common electronic medical record.

Improving acceptance of naltrexone in community addiction treatment centers: a pilot study.

Alcoholism pharmacotherapies are underused in community addiction treatment settings, in part because individuals who practice in these settings--nonmedical addiction counselors and administrators--lack knowledge about and confidence in the value of adjunctive alcohol pharmacotherapies. We developed and tested an intervention to improve knowledge and attitudes about naltrexone. A team of researchers, physicians, addiction treatment counselors, and administrators collaborated to develop a naltrexone educational intervention designed for nonmedical addiction professionals.