The Cloninger Type I/Type II Typology: Configurations and Personality Profiles in Socially Stable Alcohol Dependent Patients

Many attempts have been made to derive alcohol use typologies or subtypes of alcohol dependence and this study aimed at validating the type I/type II typology in a treatment sample of socially stable alcohol dependent males and females. A second aim was to compare the two types with respect to their temperament profiles. Data was part of a larger ongoing longitudinal study, the Gothenburg Alcohol Research Project, and included 269 alcohol dependent males and females recruited from three treatment centers. The results showed that type II alcoholism occurred as a more homogenous type than type I alcoholism, and type I alcoholism seemed too heterogeneous to be summarized into one single type. When adapting a strict classification, less than a third of the study population could be classified in accordance with the typology, suggesting that the typology is not applicable, at least in socially stable individuals with alcohol dependence. The results also showed that type II alcoholics showed higher levels of novelty seeking than did the individuals that were classified as type I alcoholics. Quite surprisingly, the individuals classified as type II alcoholics also showed higher levels of harm avoidance than did the individuals that were classified as type I alcoholics

Is There a Need for Congruent Treatment Goals Between Alcohol-Dependent Patients and Caregivers?

Background: Alcohol-dependent patients have different treatment goals when entering treatment. Furthermore, different treatment settings advocate different treatment goals. Earlier studies have pointed out that treatment goal is important for treatment outcome, both in the treatment setting as well as in the patients themselves. However, to our knowledge, no study has so far investigated the interaction between patient's goal and the goal of the treatment setting. The aim of the study was therefore to study the interaction between these 2 factors on treatment outcome. Methods: Patients' (n = 201) goals from 2 treatment settings one that had an abstinence-oriented goal and one with a low-risk drinking goal—were investigated. The patients were followed up 2.5 years after treatment entry and effectiveness of congruent treatment goals on treatment outcome was investigated. Results: There was no significant association between congruent goals and treatment outcomes (p = 0.060). However, when comparing the effectiveness of congruent treatment goal between the 2 treatment settings, the abstinence-oriented treatment setting was significantly more effective (p < 0.01). Conclusions: The major finding was that there appeared to be no association between congruence itself and treatment outcome. On the other hand, we found that the treatment outcome was more successful if the patient as well as the treatment setting had abstinence as a goal (i.e., congruent goals of abstinence)

Ungdomar som provat narkotika och haft psykiskt obehag söker sällan hjälp [Adolescents who have tried illicit drugs and experienced psychiatric symptoms seldom seek professional help. A pilot study of 18-year old high school students in an urban district]

In recent years the use of illicit drugs has increased among adolescents in Sweden. Prolonged use of illicit drugs causes different psychiatric symptoms, but usage of short duration has also been reported to induce similar symptoms. It is less known how these psychiatric symptoms caused by occasional intake of illicit drugs are managed. The present study examined to which extent students in senior high school (third grade) have experienced psychiatric symptoms due to intake of illicit drugs, and to which extent they sought support in their nearby environment or professional help for these problems. The result shows that out of 104 18-year old students, 25 percent had tested illicit drugs, with no significant gender difference. 38 percent of the users reported psychiatric symptoms. In most of these cases either amphetamine or ecstasy had been used. The most common negative feelings reported were worry/anxiety, low spiritedness/depression, and feelings of unreality. The majority had not sought help for their problems among friends or adults. No one sought professional help. The frequency of adolescents that have tried drugs is on a level with other national surveys. Therefore it is most likely that the results regarding students who had experienced drug related psychiatric symptoms, and how they handled this experience, are representative for other eighteen-year-olds as well. It is of great concern that schools, medical services and social services have the knowledge that one fourth of the adolescents are trying illicit drugs, and almost four out of ten experience drug related psychiatric symptoms but most of them do not seek support or treatment for these symptoms

Is long-term heavy alcohol consumption toxic for brain serotonergic neurons? Relationship between years of excessive alcohol consumption and serotonergic neurotransmission

The relationship between years of excessive alcohol consumption and central serotonergic neurotransmission, as assessed by the prolactin (PRL) response to D-fenfluramine, was investigated in 22 male alcohol-dependent subjects. A negative correlation was obtained, that is, the longer duration of excessive alcohol consumption the lower PRL response to D-fenfluramine. It is therefore suggested that long duration of excessive alcohol consumption in alcohol-dependent subjects causes a reduction in central serotonergic neurotransmission, possibly by a toxic effect of alcohol on serotonin neurons. The relationship between depressive and anxiety symptoms during on-going drinking and the PRL response to D-fenfluramine was also investigated. No such correlations were obtained, suggesting that reduction in central serotonergic neurotransmission does not pre-dispose to the development of depressive and anxiety symptoms, at least in relation to on-going drinking in alcohol-dependent subjects

Is long-term heavy alcohol consumption toxic for brain serotonergic neurons? Relationship between years of excessive alcohol consumption and serotonergic neurotransmission

The relationship between years of excessive alcohol consumption and central serotonergic neurotransmission, as assessed by the prolactin (PRL) response to D-fenfluramine, was investigated in 22 male alcohol-dependent subjects. A negative correlation was obtained, that is, the longer duration of excessive alcohol consumption the lower PRL response to D-fenfluramine. It is therefore suggested that long duration of excessive alcohol consumption in alcohol-dependent subjects causes a reduction in central serotonergic neurotransmission, possibly by a toxic effect of alcohol on serotonin neurons. The relationship between depressive and anxiety symptoms during on-going drinking and the PRL response to D-fenfluramine was also investigated. No such correlations were obtained, suggesting that reduction in central serotonergic neurotransmission does not pre-dispose to the development of depressive and anxiety symptoms, at least in relation to on-going drinking in alcohol-dependent subjects