In this episode, Dr Tsen Vei Lim talks to Zachary Bryant, a PhD candidate at the Matilda Centre for Research in Mental Health and Substance Use, University of Sydney, Australia. The interview covers Zachary’s research report on the relationship between MDMA (or ecstasy) use in youth adulthood and anxiety or depressive disorders in later adult life. The effects of MDMA [1:20]The prevalence of MDMA use and reasons why people take it [02:00]The relevance of MDMA for depression and anxiety [03:05]The use of the Victorian Adolescent Health Cohort Study to answer Zachary’s research question [04:17]The key findings of the study [06:50]Some reasons to explain the relationship found between MDMA use and anxiety but not depression [07:43]The self-medication hypothesis [10:04]The implication of the findings for clinical practice [11:02]The importance of replicating the findings in different cohorts and with more recent data [14:03] About Tsen Vei Lim: Tsen Vei is an academic fellow supported by the Society for the Study of Addiction, currently based at the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Cambridge. His research integrates computational modelling, experimental psychology, and neuroimaging to understand the neuropsychological basis of addictive behaviours. He holds a PhD in Psychiatry from the University of Cambridge (UK) and a BSc in Psychology from the University of Bath (UK). About Zachary Bryant: Zachary is a PhD candidate and research officer at the University of Sydney’s Matilda Centre for Research in Mental Health and Substance Use. His doctoral research examines the relationship between MDMA (ecstasy) use and mood, with a focus on implications for therapeutic applications. More broadly, his work explores the epidemiology of psychedelic use and applies advanced causal approaches to substance use research. He is particularly interested in emerging data collection and analysis methods, including intensive longitudinal designs such as Ecological Momentary Assessment (EMA).The authors have no conflicts of interest to disclose. Original article: The relationship between 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) use in young adulthood and anxiety or depressive disorders in the mid-30s: Findings from the Victorian Adolescent Health Cohort Study - https://doi.org/10.1111/add.70173The opinions expressed in this podcast reflect the views of the host and interviewees and do not necessarily represent the opinions or official positions of the SSA or Addiction journal.The SSA does not endorse or guarantee the accuracy of the information in external sources or links and accepts no responsibility or liability for any consequences arising from the use of such information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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17:13
Retention in buprenorphine treatment with Albert Burgess-Hull
In this episode, Dr Elle Wadsworth talks to Dr Albert Burgess-Hull, the Scientific Director of SUDx and Head Data Scientist at MATClinics, US. The interview covers a short report examining treatment retention in opioid use disorder comparing subcutaneous injectable versus sublingual buprenorphine. · What is buprenorphine and what it is used for? [01:00]· The benefits and drawbacks of sublingual versus subcutaneous injectable buprenorphine [01:38]· An overview of the study [04:41]· Statistically matching sublingual buprenorphine patients with subcutaneous injectable buprenorphine patients [06:05]· The main findings of the study [08:34]· The contrast of Albert’s findings with findings in previous literature [10:03]· The implications of the findings for clinicians [12:28]· The take home messages of the study [14:03]About Elle Wadsworth: Elle is an academic fellow with the Society for the Study of Addiction. She is based at the University of Bath with the Addiction and Mental Health Group and her research interests include drug policy, cannabis legalisation, and public health. Elle is also a senior analyst at RAND Europe, working on projects focusing on national and international drug policies. About Albert Burgess-Hull: Albert is an addiction scientist and machine-learning researcher, and is currently the Scientific Director of SUDx and Head Data Scientist at MATClinics. His research focuses on the development and deployment of digital health frameworks to improve medical decision-making, operational efficiency, and the delivery of substance use disorder treatments. Dr Burgess-Hull received his PhD from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and completed postdoctoral fellowship training at the National Institute on Drug Abuse IRP at the National Institutes of Health. Declarations of interest: Dr Burgess-Hull is employed by MATClinics Services LLC. MATClinics are clinics serving outpatient treatment for opioid, alcohol and stimulant use. Original article: A comparative study of treatment retention in opioid use disorder: Subcutaneous injectable versus sublingual buprenorphine https://doi.org/10.1111/add.70105 The opinions expressed in this podcast reflect the views of the host and interviewees and do not necessarily represent the opinions or official positions of the SSA or Addiction journal.The SSA does not endorse or guarantee the accuracy of the information in external sources or links and accepts no responsibility or liability for any consequences arising from the use of such information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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16:04
What works for treating cannabis use disorder with Monika Halicka
In this episode, Dr Chloe Burke talks to Dr Monika Halicka, a Senior Research Associate at the Bristol Medical School, University of Bristol, UK. The interview covers a systematic review and meta-analysis on the effectiveness and safety of psychosocial interventions for cannabis use disorder. · An overview of Monika’s paper [1:00]· The different types of psychosocial interventions found in the review [02:55]· What ‘inactive controls’ and ‘non-specific controls’ are with regards to psychosocial interventions [04:30]· Deciding on the outcomes of focus for the study [06:00]· The results of the meta-analysis in which psychosocial interventions had clinically meaningful improvements in abstinence [07:31]· The potential adverse events occurring from psychosocial interventions [09:31]· Recommendations for clinical practice and the hesitancy in making these recommendations [10:41]· The take home message of the study [12:24]About Chloe Burke: Chloe is a Senior Research Associate in Evidence Synthesis based in the Bristol Medical School, University of Bristol. Her current role applies evidence synthesis methodologies (e.g. network meta-analysis) to health-related topics, including addiction. She has a background in psychiatric epidemiology with a focus on applying causal inference methods (e.g. Mendelian randomization) to the topic of substance use and mental health. She holds a PhD in Psychology from the University of Bath, which investigated the co-use of cannabis and tobacco and depression risk. She is currently co-chair of the Society for Research on Nicotine and Tobacco Genetics and Omics Network.About Monika Halicka: Monika is a member of the National Institute for Health and Care Research Bristol Evidence Synthesis Group and works as a senior research associate in evidence synthesis at Bristol Medical School (University of Bristol, UK). With a background in psychology and neuroscience, her previous research focused on applying experimental psychology and statistical modelling approaches to health-related problems, largely in the context of chronic pain. Having transitioned to evidence synthesis, she is interested in robust statistical synthesis methods.The authors have no conflicts of interest to disclose. Original article: Effectiveness and safety of psychosocial interventions for the treatment of cannabis use disorder: A systematic review and meta-analysis https://doi.org/10.1111/add.70084 The opinions expressed in this podcast reflect the views of the host and interviewees and do not necessarily represent the opinions or official positions of the SSA or Addiction journal.The SSA does not endorse or guarantee the accuracy of the information in external sources or links and accepts no responsibility or liability for any consequences arising from the use of such information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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13:24
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13:24
Genetic influence in addiction with Wei Deng
In this episode, Dr Tsen Vei Lim speaks to Dr Wei Deng, an assistant professor from McMaster University and St Joseph’s Healthcare Hamilton, Canada. The interview covers the research article Wei led examining externalising as a common genetic influence for a broad spectrum of substance use and behavioural conditions using a large UK longitudinal dataset.‘Externalising’ is a type of outward-directed behavioural expression, such as risky substance use, aggression, and hyperactivity. ‘Polygenic risk scores’ are numbers that estimate a person’s inherited risk for a disease, trait, or condition (in this case, addiction) based on the presence of many genetic variants. · Why studying genetics is important for addiction [01:12]· How we study the genetics of addiction [01:57]· Polygenic risk scores and their importance in addiction [3:49]· The origin of Wei’s research questions [05:32]· The headline findings of the paper [08:06]· How the findings affect the way we currently think about addiction [09:22]· Common genetic components shared between behavioral and substances addictions [11:11]· The importance of the environment in the genetic risks of addiction [13:15]· How the findings can contribute to clinical practice [13:37]· How big data and artificial intelligence (AI) can help us understand addiction [14:42]· The exploration of whether genetic factors are the root cause of addiction [18:06]About Tsen Vei Lim: Dr Lim is an academic fellow supported by the Society for the Study of Addiction, currently based at the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Cambridge. His research integrates computational modelling, experimental psychology, and neuroimaging to understand the neuropsychological basis of addictive behaviours. He holds a PhD in Psychiatry from the University of Cambridge (UK) and a BSc in Psychology from the University of Bath (UK).About Wei Q Deng: Dr Deng is a statistical scientist who investigates how genes, brain function, and environment shape long-term health risks. Her research focuses on delay discounting and related self-regulation processes that influence decisions about health, substance use, and long-term planning. She studies how these traits contribute to addiction and chronic conditions like diabetes and heart disease. Using large-scale data and molecular tools, she uncovers why some people are more vulnerable and how those risks can be reduced. Based at McMaster University and St Joseph’s Healthcare Hamilton, she leads interdisciplinary projects bridging genomics, behavior, and public health.Original article: Externalizing as a common genetic influence for a broad spectrum of substance use and behavioural conditions: a development perspective from the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children. https://doi.org/10.1111/add.70163The opinions expressed in this podcast reflect the views of the host and interviewees and do not necessarily represent the opinions or official positions of the SSA or Addiction journal.The SSA does not endorse or guarantee the accuracy of the information in external sources or links and accepts no responsibility or liability for any consequences arising from the use of such information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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Nonmedical and medical ketamine use with Owen Bowden-Jones and Arun Sahai
In this episode, Dr Elle Wadsworth speaks to Professor Owen Bowden-Jones from Central North-West London NHS Foundation and Mr Arun Sahai from Guy’s and St Thomas’ Hospitals NHS Trust, both in the UK. The interview covers an editorial they wrote with Professor Paul Dargan on responses to non-medical and medical ketamine use, including concerns about the increasing harms from illicit ketamine and excitement about the potential therapeutic value of ketamine. We apologise for the sound quality at points during this episode, but we promise its worth the listen! · Ketamine and its uses [01:15]· Why ketamine is listed as an essential medicine by the World Health Organisation [01:59]· The differing uses of ketamine: an essential medicine, a novel therapeutic drug, and a recreational drug [3:00]· Ketamine’s damage to the urinary tract and the liver [04:30]· Available treatments for the physical harms of ketamine [07:45]· Whether substance use treatment services in the UK are fit-for-purpose when it comes to ketamine [11:06] · Some of the reasons why is ketamine a popular drug now [15:38]· The potential therapeutic value of ketamine for many disorders [17:29]· The importance of communicating information to people who use ketamine [19:19]About Arun Sahai: Mr Arun Sahai, PhD, FRCS (Urol), BSc (Hons.), is a Consultant Urological Surgeon in Functional urology (bladder dysfunction, incontinence, uro-neurology and urinary tract reconstruction) at Guy’s and St Thomas’ Hospitals NHS Trust and an Honorary Reader within King’s College London. He is the current chair of the section of functional and reconstructive urology at the British Association of Urological Surgeons (BAUS). He is the lead for undergraduate education in surgery for King's College London. His research interests include various aspects of benign bladder dysfunction and prostate cancer survivorship. He is active in both commercial and non-commercial clinical trials and has published more than 100 peer reviewed international papers and more than 15 book chapters. About Owen Bowden-Jones: Professor Owen Bowden-Jones CBE is a Consultant in Addiction Psychiatry at the CNWL Club Drug Clinic, London and an Honorary Professor at University College London. In 2010, Owen founded the CNWL Club Drug Clinic, an innovative service offering treatment for emerging drug problems, including novel psychoactive substances and club drugs. National roles include President of the Society for the Study of Addiction, Chair of the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs, Policy Fellow at the University of Cambridge, trustee at the charity Student Minds and Registrar at the Royal College of Psychiatrists. Owen is the past-Chair of the Faculty of Addictions at the Royal College of Psychiatrists and was previously a national clinical adviser to Public Health England. Original editorial: Responding to medicinal and non-medicinal ketamine use https://doi.org/10.1111/add.70075The opinions expressed in this podcast reflect the views of the host and interviewees and do not necessarily represent the opinions or official positions of the SSA or Addiction journal. The SSA does not endorse or guarantee the accuracy of the information in external sources or links and accepts no responsibility or liability for any consequences arising from the use of such information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Welcome to the podcast from the journal Addiction. The podcast includes interviews with Addiction authors about their work, details about publishing in the journal, and other topics of interest to the field of addiction. This podcast is for researchers, clinicians, students, people with lived experience, and anyone with an interest in the topic. For Season 3, our interviewers are: Dr Elle Wadsworth, Dr Tsen Vei Lim, Dr Chloe Burke, and Dr Zoe Swithenbank. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Netherlands