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Tag: cannabis
01/30/2023

Feasibility and acceptability of using smartphone-based EMA to assess patterns of prescription opioid and medical cannabis use among individuals with chronic pain

Anderson Goodell EM, Nordeck C, Finan PH, Vandrey R, Dunn KE, & Thrul J. (2021). Feasibility and acceptability of using smartphone-based EMA to assess patterns of prescription opioid and medical cannabis use among individuals with chronic pain. Internet Interventions: the Application of Information Technology in Mental and Behavioural Health, 26, 100460–100460. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.invent.2021.100460

This paper described the feasibility and acceptability of a smartphone-based Ecological Momentary Assessment (EMA) data collection tool among people who use multiple substances and suffer from chronic pain. Forty-six participants were recruited through targeted Facebook and Instagram advertisements and completed screening via the link in the ads. Eligible participants had an opioid medication prescription, current opioid use, a pain disorder, and a referral for medical cannabis. Participants completed prompted EMA surveys on a mobile app for 30 days. Surveys included questions about opioid medication use, medical cannabis use, and pain symptoms. Participants were prompted to respond to four randomly timed surveys (assessing the past hour) and one daily diary per day. A subsample of 10 participants completed qualitative interviews. On average, participants responded to 70% of past-hour surveys and 92% of daily diaries. During qualitative interviews, participants reported an overall positive experience, but identified some issues related to smartphone notifications, redundant questions, or being prompted to complete assessments when they do not feel well. Findings demonstrate the feasibility and general acceptability of using this methodology for examining patterns of medical cannabis and prescription opioid medication use among individuals with chronic pain. Engagement with the digital tool over the 30-day duration was comparable to previous work. This study has implications for informing larger-scale epidemiology studies, interventions, and assessments on a wider geographic scale.

Posted in: Cutting Edge Literature // Tagged: ; ; ; ; ; ; ;
01/23/2023

“I got a bunch of weed to help me through the withdrawals”: Naturalistic cannabis use reported in online opioid and opioid recovery community discussion forums

Meacham MC, Nobles AL, Tompkins DA, Thrul J (2022) “I got a bunch of weed to help me through the withdrawals”: Naturalistic cannabis use reported in online opioid and opioid recovery community discussion forums. PLoS ONE 17(2): e0263583. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0263583

This study investigated cannabis-related posts in two online communities on the Reddit platform to compare naturalistic cannabis use by people actively using opioids versus people in recovery from opioid misuse. Researchers extracted all posts mentioning keywords related to cannabis from an opioid use subreddit and opioid recovery subreddit on Reddit from December 2015 to August 2019. Cannabis-related posts were analyzed using qualitative content analysis to identify the most frequently used phrases and then compared between the two subreddits. Cannabis-related posts were twice as prevalent in the recovery subreddit (N=908, 5% of posts) than the active opioid use subreddit (N=4224, 2.6% of posts). The most frequent phrases in the recovery subreddit referred to time without opioid use and using cannabis as treatment. The opioid use subreddit most frequently referred to concurrent use of cannabis and opioids. The primary reason for cannabis use among persons in recovery was to manage opioid withdrawal symptoms and among active opioid users to achieve the “high” in conjunction with opioids. This study of naturalistic cannabis use reported on an online community platform provides insight into the motivation behind cannabis use among people who actively or previously used opioids. Findings have implications for cannabis policy and its potential impact on opioid use in the context of unmet treatment needs for opioid use disorder. Future research is needed to understand the role of cannabis for treating opioid withdrawal symptoms.

Posted in: Cutting Edge Literature // Tagged: ; ; ; ;
11/14/2022

Dependence & Measurement w/ Dr. Alan Budney

Article Excerpt: Dr. Alan Budney joins Marcel and Erica on this episode of The CannaPod. Dr. Budney is a professor at the Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth and serves as Director of the Treatment Development & Evaluation Core of Dartmouth’s Center for Technology and Behavioral Health.

Full Article: https://tinyurl.com/2w77c57n

Article Source: CannaPod Podcast

Posted in: Dissemination & Implementation // Tagged: ; ; ; ; ; ;
04/07/2022

Science Update: Digital Tool to Increase Youth HIV Testing Shows Promise in NIH-Funded Study

Article Excerpt: Youth aged 13 to 24 years who were offered HIV testing by a digital health tool on a tablet computer were as likely to accept as those who were offered testing face-to-face, according to a study funded by the National Institutes of Health. However, among study participants aged 19 and younger who previously declined HIV testing, those who used the digital tool were 1.7 times more likely to agree to an HIV test, compared to those who received a face-to-face offer. Findings from the study, which was conducted in a New York City hospital emergency department, appear in Cureus. The Mobile Augmented Screening tool, or MAS, was developed and evaluated with funding from NIH’s Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development. Ian David Aronson, Ph.D., of Digital Health Empowerment and New York University, led the work.

Full Article: https://tinyurl.com/67nnmsu7

Article Source: NICHD

Posted in: Emerging Technologies // Tagged: ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ;
03/02/2022

What Euphoria Gets Right—and Wrong—About Teen Drug Use and Addiction

Article Excerpt: The show (Euphoria) has sparked controversy over how it portrays teen drug use. In January, D.A.R.E.—the Drug Abuse Resistance Education program—criticized the show for “glorify[ing]” high school drug use and making it seem “common and widespread in today’s world.” But drug use is not uncommon among high school students today. In the U.S., about 1.6 million kids ages 12 to 17—6.3% of the adolescent population—had substance use disorder in 2020, according to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). “That’s a huge problem,” says Dr. Lynn Fiellin, professor of medicine at the Yale School of Medicine and Child Study Center, who is trained in addiction medicine and behavioral health (and who is a fan of the show). The problem seems to be growing, too; in 2020, millions more kids tried drugs for the first time. “Euphoria depicts exactly what is going on,” she says.

Full Article: https://tinyurl.com/4dszsv8b

Article Source: Time

Posted in: Uncategorized // Tagged: ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ;
12/15/2021

Hartford Retail Cannabis Forum Stirs Debate Over Economic Benefit, Public Health Risks

Article Excerpt: “There is a strong possibility that Hartford (Vermont) will ask its residents on (Town Meeting Day) of March 2022 if they want to opt in to allow cannabis sales in Hartford” (Hartford Selectboard Vice Chair Joe) Major said in introducing the topic at a town hall discussion Monday night at Hartford High School. The meeting, organized by the Selectboard and the Hartford Community Coalition, featured a panel of local experts on the issue so that voters “could make an informed decision before going into the voter booth,” Major said. The positives of allowing local cannabis sales, however, were challenged by professionals in the medical and social service fields, as well as some in the audience who cast a skeptical eye on industry-supplied data and a cautious approach. “When the (cannabis) industry is the one that’s telling you how it all works and promising you, that you’re going to make money as a town … and your property values are going to go up and you’re going to have high-paying jobs … you have to realize that’s all speculative,” said Alan Budney, a professor of psychiatry and biomedical data science at Dartmouth’s Geisel School of Medicine who researches cannabis use disorder.

Full Article: https://tinyurl.com/yt8vfe23

Article Source: Valley News

Posted in: News, Regulation & Policy // Tagged: ; ; ; ; ; ; ;
10/19/2021

How to Talk to Teens About Edibles

Article Excerpt: Many teens already underestimate the risks associated with marijuana… With regard to edibles in particular, one study found that the likelihood that teens will try them rises the longer cannabis has been legal in a community, and with the number of dispensaries in the area. Dr. Jacob Borodovsky, the study’s lead author and an epidemiologist at Dartmouth’s Center for Technology and Behavioral Health, said the marketing worries him. If you live in a state where pot is legal, you’re likely to see roadside billboards featuring images of pot leaves and catchy slogans like “Think Higher.” “It’s one thing to legalize marijuana, and another thing to post it all over social media and billboards,” he said.

Full Article: https://tinyurl.com/jejwe68

Article Source: The New York Times

Posted in: News // Tagged: ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ;
09/27/2021

Smartphone Sensor Data Has Potential to Detect Cannabis Intoxication

Article Excerpt: A smartphone sensor, much like what is used in GPS systems, might be a way to determine whether or not someone is intoxicated after consuming marijuana, according to a new study by the Rutgers Institute for Health, Health Care Policy and Aging Research. According to the study, published in Drug and Alcohol Dependence, which evaluated the feasibility of using smartphone sensor data to identify episodes of cannabis intoxication in the natural environment, a combination of time features (tracking the time of day and day of week) and smartphone sensor data had a 90 percent rate of accuracy.

Full Article: https://tinyurl.com/4jyzx6jk

Article Source: Newswise

Posted in: Emerging Technologies // Tagged: ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ;
05/07/2021

U.S. cannabis legalization and use of vaping and edible products among youth

Borodovsky J, Lee D, Crosier B, et al. (2017). U.S. cannabis legalization and use of vaping and edible products among youth. Drug and Alcohol Dependence. 177: 299-306. doi: 10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2017.02.017

Researchers examined relationships between provisions of U.S. legal cannabis laws (LCL) (e.g., medical and/or recreational cannabis laws that permit home cultivation and/or dispensaries) and the likelihood and age of first use of cannabis vaping and edibles among youth. Read More

Posted in: Cutting Edge Literature // Tagged: ; ; ; ; ;