Introduction: Hispanic/Latinx (hereafter Latinx) individuals in the United States (US) face unique smoking-related health disparities, including limited access to care and health insurance for smoking treatment. Social determinants of health (SDoH) have received increased recognition in their role of smoking behavior and cessation. However, research on SDoH in Latinx smoking populations has been limited. Past research on non-Latinx white individuals has found smoking abstinence expectancies to be an integral cognitive process related to multiple aspects of smoking behavior, and its role has also been understudied in Latinx individuals. Perceived racial/ethnic discrimination is one SDoH, but its role in relation to abstinence expectancies among Latinx smokers has not been explored. Therefore, the present investigation sought to evaluate perceived racial/ethnic discrimination in terms of smoking abstinence expectancies among Latinx smokers living in the US.
Methods: Participants included 338 English-speaking Latinx adult daily cigarette smokers (M = 35.5 years; SD = 8.65; age range 18-61; 37.3 % female) recruited nationally throughout the US using Qualtrics Panels.
Results: Results supported statistically significant main effects for perceived racial/ethnic discrimination in relation to increased smoking abstinence expectancies of negative mood, somatic symptoms, harmful consequences, and positive consequences (p's < 0.001).
Discussion: Overall, the results of the present investigation build from a limited body of work on perceived racial/ethnic discrimination and smoking and provide novel evidence of consistent and moderate incremental associations between perceived racial/ethnic discrimination and negative and positive smoking abstinence expectancies among Latinx smokers.
Background: Portal hypertension (PH) resulting from static and dynamic intrahepatic changes drives liver-related complications even after removing the underlying aetiological factor.
Objective: We investigated the impact of inflammation on the dynamic component of PH during disease regression in animal models of toxin-induced cirrhosis and patients with alcohol-related cirrhosis.
Methods: In mice, cirrhosis was induced via toxin application for 12 weeks followed by toxin-withdrawal allowing for one or 2 weeks of regression.
Addiction is considered a chronic disorder that requires long-term treatment. Early identification of predictors of outcome may enable better and early adjustment of treatment. Daily fluctuations of craving have been shown to predict substance use within hours, making it a major target for treatment.
Importance: Amidst an unprecedented opioid epidemic, identifying neurobiological correlates of change with medication-assisted treatment of heroin use disorder is imperative. White matter impairments in individuals with heroin use disorder (HUD) have been associated with drug craving, a reliable predictor of treatment outcomes; however, little is known about structural connectivity changes with inpatient treatment and abstinence in individuals with HUD.
Objective: To assess white matter microstructure and associations with drug craving changes with inpatient treatment in individuals with HUD (effects of time and rescan compared with controls).
Introduction: This study aimed to assess whether brief stop-smoking advice given to women who smoke and visit their general practice for cervical cancer screening improves smoking cessation outcomes.
Methods: This two-arm cluster-randomised controlled trial was conducted in 75 Dutch general practices. Participants in the intervention group received brief stop-smoking advice based on the Ask-Advise-Connect method, delivered by a practice assistant.
