The mean age in the sample was 44.8 (SD=12.9), 56.7% were married, 18.1% were single, 39.5% had a University degree, 83.3% were working, and 7.8% were on sick leave. The mean weight was 86.4kg (SD=23.01), the mean height was 180.7cm (SD=7.99), and the mean BMI was 26.6 (SD=7.85).

More men than expected with symptoms of ED. Prevalence numbers for the different eating disorders according to DSM-IV will be presented in March. In addition, data on the relationship between eating disorders, physical activity, and exercise dependence will be presented.

Cross-sectional study of patients on a waiting list for obesity treatment, n=160, 117 women and 43 men.

Postal questionnaires were used. Instruments: Eating disorders in obesity (EDO), HADS, SF-12, and EPQ.

Mean age for the sample was 41.2 years, and the mean height and weight was 171 cm and 138 kg. A total of 20% showed symptoms of eating disorders, 24.7% of the men, and 17.1% of the women, respectively. Preliminary analyses indicate that the groups with an eating disorder had more psychopathology, and lower quality of life compared to other groups.

More results will be prepared in March.

The results gave higher numbers than a similar Swedish study. Results from this study should be used in the future treatment of this neglected patient group.

The Irish are amongst the highest consumers of alcohol in Europe. This study aimed to assess the effectiveness of daily outpatient alcohol detoxification in an Irish Public Psychiatric Hospital.

The outpatient records of patients presenting to St Brendan's Hospital in one year with symptoms of Alcohol Dependency Syndrome (ADS) and commencing daily outpatient detoxification were examined retrospectively for parameters relevant to the aim of the study.

Forty patients underwent outpatient alcohol detoxification in one year and complete records were available for 32 patients. 20 patients had fixed addresses in the hospital catchments areas, 8 patients had no fixed addresses and the remaining 4 patients had addresses outside the catchments areas. 7 patients, all known to sector services, presented with a co-morbid psychiatric condition. For the detoxification, 28 patients attended on the second day whilst 22 patients attended their third day's appointment. Only 17 patients completed the outpatient detoxification. 13 patients received at least two outpatient detoxifications during the year; of whom 7 patients received their second detoxification within two months of the first one. The record of 20 patients showed that they had received advice regarding self-referral to counselling services.

A high proportion of patients (47%) presenting with symptoms of ADS did not complete daily outpatient detoxifications. A high proportion of all patients (40.6%) also underwent multiple outpatient detoxifications during the year. It is possible that the separation between alcohol detoxification and alcohol counselling services in Ireland contributed to these disappointing results.

The National Treatment Agency has set 12-week retention as an outcome measure for the treatment of opiate addiction. Both methadone and buprenorphine show research evidence of efficacy in this condition. To ensure that these medications are being used optimally, we performed a baseline audit in two drug treatment services in North East London with a view to identifying potential improvements in service delivery.

Prescriptions for patients being treated for opiate addiction have been generated from a computerised system since April 2004. We obtained a list of all prescriptions generated between April 2004 and August 2005. As well as demographic data, we noted what medication had been prescribed, the daily dose at stabilisation, and whether the patient was still in treatment at 12 weeks.

214 patients received 226 episodes of treatment. 114 episodes involved treatment with methadone, 112 with buprenorphine. 69% of episodes in which a patient was treated with methadone (mean daily dose 51mg) were associated with still being in treatment at 12 weeks; the figure for buprenorphine was 43%, with a mean daily dose of 11mg.

Methadone currently seems to be associated with better retention than buprenorphine, though some guidelines suggest that the dose of buprenorphine is too low. Other guidelines suggest that increasing the dose of methadone has potential for a small additional improvement in retention. We aim to get daily doses of methadone to a mean of 60mg, buprenorphine to 16mg, and will re-audit.

A self-medication hypothesis has been proposed to explain the association between cannabis use and a number of psychiatric and behavioral problems. However, there is little knowledge on reasons for use and reactions while intoxicated, in cannabis users who suffer from depression or problems controlling violent behavior.

We assessed 119 cannabis dependent subjects using the Schedules of Clinical Assessment in Neuropsychiatry (SCAN), parts of the Addiction Severity Index (ASI), and questionnaires on reasons for cannabis use and reactions to cannabis use while intoxicated. Participants with lifetime depression, and problems controlling violent behavior, were compared to subjects without such problems. Validity of the groupings was corroborated by use of a psychiatric treatment register, previous use of psychotropic medication, and convictions for violence.

Subjects with lifetime depression used cannabis for the same reasons as others. While under the influence of cannabis, they more often experienced depression, sadness, anxiety and paranoia, and they were less likely to report happiness or euphoria. Participants reporting problems controlling violent behavior more often used cannabis to decrease aggression, decrease suspiciousness, and for relaxation; while intoxicated they more often reacted with aggression.

Subjects with prior depression do not use cannabis as a mean of self-medication. They are more likely to experience specific increases of adverse symptoms while under the influence of cannabis, and are less likely to experience specific symptom relief. There is some evidence that cannabis is used as a mean of self-medication for problems controlling aggression.

To study the incidence of Attention Deficit and Hiperactivity Disorder (ADHD) in a patients sample in treatment for cocaine addiction, and the characteristics of this group.

We have recruited 43 subjects in treatment to cocaine abuse (DSM-IV-TR : F14) in Adicction Provincial Center in Grandada.

We have registered sociodemográfical and clinical data, habits of abuse, the Cocaine Effects Expectancy Questionnaire, two scales autoadministered for ADHD's diagnosis: in the infancy, Wender Utah Rating Scale (WURS) and in the adult (scale of the list of ADHD's symptoms in DSM-IV).

The sample was divided in two groups according to the presence of ADHD in adult age.

In 60,5% of the sample there was history of ADHD in the infancy, with persistence 80,8% (48,8% of the sample) in the adult age.

Patients with ADHD were smokers in 95,5%. 71,4% was consuming alcohol (average 12,6 gr/week), 23,8% was consuming cocaine always together with alcohol.

61,9% of the ADHD group was consuming another illegal drug (cannabis), opposite to 31,8% in control group. (p=0,048).

The first consumption in ADHD group is earlier (17 years vs. 22 years; p=0,001) and most frequent consumption too (22,4 years vs. 27,6 years; p=0,006).

Cocaine doses used is higher in ADHD group (1,39 gr vs 1,07 gr n.s.)

There is a high comorbidity in cocaine abuse with ADHD. This group has different characteristics, as the age of beginning of the abuse or of the higher abuse.

In our previous study we designed a visual cue based craving task which reliably induces craving. We investigated that there are two distinguishable groups of heroin addicts: responder and non responder to the cues. In this study we used fMRI to examine this subjective difference.

30 right handed male heroin IV abusers with IV injection for at least 6 months compared to 15 normal right handed males. DSMIV and Addiction Severity Index (ASI) were administrated. Cue Induce Craving Task was presented during and after imaging. BOLD signal analysis performed by FSL™.

A number of cases demonstrate high cortical activation in: cingulate gyrus, rectus gyrus, medial frontal gyrus,nucleus accombans and cingulum (17/30).No significant activation observed in the control group and in 13 cases. There was shown that these 13 cases had less hunger for drug consumption during the analog presentation. No significant ASI or DSMIV differences were found. They were the same as control group in their FSL feat analysis.

We recognized two separated groups: Heavily cue responder and non responder. They are different in subjective response to the drug cues and in their brain activation (the regions that are responsible for reward and punishment). We also found that the FMRI findings are highly correlated to the subjective responses. This means that the Visual Craving Task is a reliable devise for estimating the degree of craving in the heroin addicts.

The objective of this 12-week prospective study of 183 alcohol use disorder patients was to identify patient characteristics that predict engagement and the course in addiction treatment.

At intake, patients' addiction severity, social functioning, psychiatric symptoms and diagnoses were assessed using semi-structured interviews (Addiction Severity Index, SCID-I, and SCID-II), and self-report questionnaires (Barratt's Impulsiveness Scale, Beck Depression Inventory, Beck Anxiety Inventory, and Symptom Checklist 90-R). Patients were reassessed biweekly for 12 weeks to determine alcohol use.

In the first 28 days following intake, 100 patients had slipped or relapsed on alcohol, 75 were abstinent, and 8 were lost to follow-up. Among those patients who had consumed alcohol, the mean time to first slip was 7.3 days, and the mean time to first relapse was 12.1 days. The rate of early drop-out (<28 days) was 15% among relapsing patients vs. 3% for abstinent patients (p=0.003).

There were no differences between relapsing and abstinent patients in terms of their alcohol severity at intake, or their rates of depression or anxiety disorders. However, relapsing patients had more secondary drug use (p<0.001), lower social functioning (p=0.011), higher levels of impulsivity (p=0.005), and greater rates of Cluster B personality disorders (p=0.004) than abstinent patients. The hierarchical regression model accounted for 38% of the variance in abstinence status at 28 days.

Alcoholic patients who presented with more chaotic lives (impulsivity, secondary drug use, lack of social support) and concurrent Cluster B personality disorders were more difficult to engage in addiction treatment.

Over the last few years, there has been increased interest in the addictive potential of the internet. The current study was an attempt to replicate common findings in the literature and provide more evidence for the existence of internet addiction among school students - a population considered to be especially vulnerable.

Studies of general internet users suggest that some children's may experience psychological problems such as social isolation, depression, loneliness, and time mismanagement related to their internet use and failure at school.

All of the students (N = 650) came from 7 gymnasium schools and 6 high schools of Iasi, Romania. The students answered to a questionnaire comprising 34 questions related to computer activities. These were aimed at highlighting: 1. The frequency of internet use by the students; 2. The identification of a psychological problems; 3. Identification of a possible internet addiction.

Results show that the school students prefer to spend a considerable amount of time with their computers, over 5 hours/day. The purpose of this article is to describe how internet use affect socialization, academic performance, personality and to discuss how identity are constructed in cyberspace.

Excessive amounts of time at a computer can contribute to undeveloped social skills and a form of addictive behaviour, and failure at school. Internet addiction is marked by symptoms of increasing tolerance, withdrawal, mood changes, and interruption of social relationships. The results show that the parents don't recognize internet addiction.

For the last three years (2004-2006) the situation in the Chechen republic began to vary towards normalization. Reduction of uneasiness and affective frustration occurred for the last few years gradually

The total number of surveyed has made 5888 persons. The analysis of all acts on years, on age (up to 20 years, up to 30 years, up to 40 years, up to 50 years) was carried out. Drivers, in their turn have been divided in two groups: those who made transport incidents and those who didn't.

The number of delivered on toxicological survey for intoxication tends to growth occurs on a background of sharp growth of delivered drivers suffered in a road accidents (162,322,381-accordingly).

To estimate the general tendency in the attitude relation alcohol consumption of the population materials of survey of the persons who were not driving motor transport were analyzed by us as well, but delivered fore infringement of the administrative legislation by law enforcement bodies. In 2004 was 72 persons was delivered. In 2005-487, in 2006 860 persons have already delivered. The share of drunk from the general number of delivered changes within the limits of 68,79,4 and 67,3 percent. Thus there is a tendency to growth of alcohol consumption in a younger age under 30 years.

In the Chechen republic among the drivers delivered to survey the age over 40 years prevails. Among delivered for infringement of a social order that of under 30 years

Both psychotherapy and pharmacotherapy approaches are needed to a successful treatment of tobacco addiction. Until now, bupropion and nicotine substitutes where the more important pharmacological agents, but things are becoming to change.

The authors make a review about the new drugs available.

Varenicline tartrate has been approved by FDA in May of 2006, and preliminary studies of efficacy reveal percentages of tobacco cessation even higher than bupropion. Rimonabant is another new drug with potential utility in tobacco addiction. It is the first selective blocker of canabinoid receptors CB1. Selegiline and Topiramate can be useful in cases of comorbidity or resistance to other drugs, but they need more studies to establish their utility in treatment of tobacco addiction. Antinicotine vaccines are also been discussed, because they could reduce the cerebral distribution of nicotine, and then act in the positive reinforcement of tobacco addiction.

Varenicline and rimonabant are two promising drugs in farmacological treatment of tobacco addiction