As the overdose crisis evolves, it is important to monitor fentanyl consumption patterns. This review provides an overview of recent findings regarding illegally manufactured fentanyl (IMF) availability, use, and associated harms in the US.

Both substance use disorders (SUD) and chronic pain are highly prevalent, require new effective interventions, and share similar underlying neurocircuitry. A promising intervention for both is repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) which is a tool to modulate brain circuits. In this narrative review, we surveyed the current state of rTMS used to address SUDs and chronic pain by focusing on 132 reports published since 2010.

This review examines and traces the construct from theory and operationalization to clinical practice and intervention design in addiction science.

This paper aimed to estimate pooled bi-directional associations between multidimensional sleep health and substance use among youth and investigate whether these associations differed as a function of race/ethnicity.

The Hispanosphere is a vast region of the world that has received little attention in the digital health literature. No study to date has examined the availability and quality of publicly available mobile applications (apps) for cigarette smoking cessation in this region. Three coders utilized the American Psychiatry Association (APA)'s Brief App Evaluation Model Screener (Brief-AEM Screener) to evaluate the quality of the label and public-facing screens of smoking cessation apps in Spanish. Availability of apps in the Hispanosphere was compared to availability of apps in the Anglosphere.

We present current evidence on the associations among sleep, pain, and medications for opioid use disorder (MOUD) among individuals with opioid use disorder (OUD).

There are disproportionately elevated rates of cannabis use and cannabis use disorder (CUD) among sexual and gender minoritized (SGM) individuals. Minority stressors (e.g., victimization, internalized stigma) are a robust predictor of SGM cannabis and related outcomes. The psychological mediation framework posits that changes in coping and emotion regulation, social/interpersonal, cognitive, and SGM group-specific functioning explain associations between minority stress and cannabis outcomes. This systematic review covers the extant literature evaluating the putative mechanisms that link minority stress to cannabis use and related outcomes.

This narrative review summarizes research-to-date on strategies to prevent problematic cannabis use.

In the alcohol research literature, many studies demonstrate the impact of advertisements, outlet density, and perceived norms on attitudes and behaviors. Now that Washington State has exceeded 11 years of legal cannabis for non-medical purposes, building upon the existing evidence base with alcohol, we can examine what contributes to perceived harm and availability with cannabis in a legal context and begin to explore opportunities for future research.

The purpose of this review is to investigate the use of digital health technologies and/or digital therapeutics (DTx) products in the treatment of substance use disorders (SUDs) in the general population and among criminal justice-involved individuals.

The objective of this scoping review is to use a health equity lens to understand the extent and type of evidence that exists about the use of electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS) based on socioecological understandings of health influences (i.e., the US National Institute of Minority Health and Health Disparities' (NIMHD) Research Framework). The research question guiding the review was as follows: What is the range and scope of research that exists to help characterize health disparities related to ENDS use?

Addiction may be characterized along three functional domains: Approach Behavior, Executive Function, and Negative Emotionality. Constructs underlying impulsivity thought to be relevant in addiction map on to these three functional domains. The purpose of the present review was to evaluate the extant research regarding sex/gender differences in the multi-dimensional domains of addiction using human neuroimaging and discuss their relevance to impulsivity.

Evaluate literature examining whether mutual help groups (MHGs) for illicit drug use disorders benefit participants.

African American individuals in the US have the highest rates of mortality from diseases such as lung cancer, coronary heart disease, and stroke compared with other minoritized people due to tobacco smoking. Evidence-based interventions are useful for reducing the burden of diseases by helping those who smoke to quit. Despite a higher motivation to quit, African American adult smokers have lower success rates and less access to evidence-based interventions. Hence, it is important to study the factors associated with unsuccessful quit attempts among this population and to search the literature for gaps that need to be addressed.

The purpose of the review was to examine findings on sleep characteristics among children with a parental history of alcohol use disorder (CPHAUDs) in different age groups. We identified unanswered questions and discussed directions for future research. We also discussed the implications of these current findings on alcohol prevention and intervention programs.

Nicotine addiction is the result of repeated tobacco use and subsequently promotes continued consumption, potentially acting as both cause and consequence of tobacco use. This scoping review aims to describe the literature and catalogue existing measures regarding perceptions of nicotine addiction with special attention to scales that recognize its multidimensionality.

Alcohol problem recognition reflects the extent to which a person with any level of problematic alcohol use (PAU), including hazardous alcohol use, acknowledges the associated risks/harms as potentially/actually problematic with a relative degree of objectivity. Notably, alcohol problem recognition is typically low amongst people with PAU not engaged in treatment or support. This review evaluates existing PAU problem recognition measures and related concepts such as ambivalence, readiness to change, motivation, cognitive biases and other self-evaluative appraisal processes.

Behavioural addictions involve loss of control over initially rewarding behaviours, which continue despite adverse consequences. Theoretical models suggest that these patterns of behaviour evolve over time, with compulsive and habitual behaviours held to reflect a loss of behavioural control. Compulsivity can be broadly described as a propensity for (or engagement in) repetitive behaviours that are not aligned with overall goals. Here, we consider whether compulsivity is associated with behavioural addictions at different stages of their development, based on self-report and neurocognitive measures.

Drug addiction is characterized by compulsive drug seeking and use, accompanied by negative emotional states (hyperkatifeia) and heightened pain sensitivity (hyperalgesia) during withdrawal. Both hyperalgesia and hyperkatifeia are integral components of substance use disorders, negatively impacting treatment and recovery. The underlying neurobiological mechanisms of hyperalgesia and hyperkatifeia involve alterations of brain reward and stress circuits, including the dynorphin/κ-opioid receptor (KOR) system. The dynorphin/KOR system modulates pain perception, negative affect, and addictive behaviors. Here, we review the preclinical evidence of dynorphin/KOR signaling in opioid withdrawal-induced hyperalgesia and hyperkatifeia.

Women experience worse alcohol-related health consequences compared to men, including greater risk and susceptibility to the neurotoxic effects of alcohol. There is a critical need to identify underlying neurobiological mechanisms underlying sex differences in alcohol use disorder (AUD) phenotypes to better inform individualized treatment options. This report aimed to systematically review existing original literature that examined sex differences in white matter tract integrity in individuals with heavy drinking/AUD using diffusion magnetic resonance imaging (dMRI) and provide recommendations for future research. A systematic review was conducted using Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines and PubMed and Google Scholar databases from inception until January 1, 2024.

Glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists (GLP-1RAs) have emerged as a potential therapeutic class for substance use disorders (SUD). This narrative review focuses primarily on clinical and epidemiological studies to synthesize existing evidence on GLP-1RAs in the context of SUD. The overall objective is to clarify current understanding, summarize ongoing and forthcoming trials, and provide directions for future clinical research on the potential utility of GLP-1RAs in treating SUD.