Do recreational drugs make us fail to remember?

ScienceDaily (Feb. 23, 2010) — A new study from UK researchers suggests that for those who regularly use ecstasy or other recreational drugs, a certain kind of memory lapse is more common. Their research, which uncovered potential links between memory deficits and cocaine for the first time, appears in the Journal of Psychopharmacology, published by SAGE.

Increasing neurogenesis might prevent drug addiction and relapse

ScienceDaily (2010-02-26) -- Researchers hope they have begun paving a new pathway in the fight against drug dependence. Their hypothesis -- that increasing the normally occurring process of making nerve cells might prevent addiction -- is based on a rodent study demonstrating that blocking new growth of specific brain nerve cells increases vulnerability for cocaine addiction and relapse.

The Association of Pipe and Cigar Use With Cotinine Levels, Lung Function, and Airflow Obstruction — Ann Intern Med

The Association of Pipe and Cigar Use With Cotinine Levels, Lung Function, and Airflow Obstruction — Ann Intern Med
Conclusion: Pipe and cigar smoking increased urine cotinine levels and was associated with decreased lung function and increased odds of airflow obstruction, even in participants who had never smoked cigarettes.

DSM-V Draft Includes Major Changes to Addictive Disease Classifications

News Feature
By Bob Curley
The first draft of the American Psychiatric Association's (APA) latest Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-V) eliminates the disease categories for substance abuse and dependence and replaces it with a new "addictions and related disorders" ...

Novelty lures rats from cocaine-paired settings, hinting at new treatments for recovering addicts

ScienceDaily (2010-02-05) -- The brain's innate interest in the new and different may help trump the power of addictive drugs, according to new research. In controlled experiments, novelty drew cocaine-treated rats away from the place they got cocaine.

Please comment on DSM-5 criteria Feb 10, 2010 through April 20, 2010

DSM-5 Draft Criteria Available for Public Comment through April 20

The American Psychiatric Association is seeking your comments on proposed criteria for the fifth edition of Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM), the standard classification of mental disorders used by mental health and other health professionals for diagnostic and research purposes.

Proposed DSM-5 draft criteria will be available for review and comment at http://www.DSM5.org from February 10 to April 20, 2010. Health professionals, mental health consumers and family members are invited to visit the site to review and comment on the draft criteria.

DSM-5 remains a work in progress: following the public comment period, the DSM-5 Task Force and Work Groups will spend two years reviewing and refining proposed criteria based on public comments and the results of field trials, which will be conducted in three phases to test some of the proposed diagnostic criteria in real-world clinical settings.

The release of the final DSM-5 is expected in May 2013.

For more information, visit http://www.DSM5.org.