The Brief Addiction Science Information Source (BASIS)

STASH, Vol. 15(9) - WhatsApp with social media and smartphone messaging apps in the illicit drug market?

In 2018, 18% of college students reported having used an illicit drug other than marijuana in the previous year, a rate that is higher than other age groups. These students, and other people their age, might be experimenting with social media apps as a new method for buying and selling drugs. This week, as part of our Special Series on Addiction and Social Media, STASH reviews a study by Leah Moyle and her colleagues looking at how social media applications are currently being used to facilitate drug transactions. What was the research question? What are common practices and motivations for... Read more →

STASH, Vol. 15(8) - Nature vs. nurture: The interaction between early-life adversity and genetics in adult drug use

This week, STASH reviews a study by William Lovallo and colleagues that examined how experiencing adversity during childhood and COMT gene expression interact to play a role in an individual’s adult drug use. Read more →

STASH, Vol. 15(7) - Do medical marijuana laws reduce deaths from prescription opioid and heroin overdoses?

This week, STASH reviews a study by David Powell and colleagues that examined how changes in medical marijuana laws affected deaths due to prescription opioids and heroin. Read more →

STASH, Vol. 15(6) - Attention at all ages: A recent, rapid increase in opioid treatment among older adults

This week, STASH reviews a study by Andrew Huhn and colleagues that examined how treatment admissions of older adults for opioid use disorder have changed during the United States opioid crisis. Read more →

STASH, Vol. 15(5) - Drug injection, syringe source, and self-stigma in New York City

This week, as part of our Special Series on Stigma and Addiction, we review a study by Alexis Rivera and colleagues that investigated which injection risk behaviors and demographic factors are associated with self-stigma among PWID in New York City. Read more →

STASH, Vol. 15(4) - College try: The role of stress and depression in nonmedical prescription drug use among students

This week, STASH reviews a study by Margaret Pate and Riane Bolin that investigated the relationship between stress, depression, and nonmedical prescription drug use in college students. Read more →

STASH, Vol. 15(3) - Does nonmedical use of stimulants increase risk for gambling problems among adolescents?

This week, as part of our Special Series on Gambling Disorder, STASH reviews a study by Jérémie Richard and colleagues that explored how adolescent nonmedical stimulant use relates to experiences of gambling-related problems. Read more →

STASH, Vol.15(2) - Improvement in psychiatric symptoms in the absence of counseling for Opioid Use Disorder

This week, STASH reviews a study by Joanna Streck and colleagues that investigated whether patients experience improvement in psychiatric symptoms with buprenorphine in the absence of counseling. Read more →

STASH, Vol.15(1) - Racial disparities in opioid treatment completion across U.S. cities

This week, STASH reviews a study by Gerald Stahler and Jeremy Mennis that investigated how opioid treatment completion varies by race in different U.S metropolitan areas. Read more →

STASH, Vol. 14(13) - What can twins tell us about cannabis dependence and IQ?

Adolescents who use cannabis often show signs of cognitive impairment. It could be that cannabis causes these impairments. Another possibility is that underlying family risk factors-- like socioeconomic status, parenting style, neighborhood, and educational opportunities-- contribute both to cannabis use and cognitive impairment. Studying twins can help us tease apart these explanations, because twins share the same family background but don’t necessarily use substances in the same way. This week, STASH reviews a study by Madeline Meier and colleagues that explored how cannabis dependence among twins relates to IQ. What is the research question? Among pairs of twins, what is... Read more →