Media and Education Activities

Press Releases

December 12, 2003 - NIDA NewsScan #27

• Research Yields New Insights into Molecular Markers of Addiction
• The Value of Vouchers May Not Be as Relevant as the Timing
• Long-Term Treatment Yields Greatest Drug-Use Reductions
• Cocaine Use May Cause Alterations in Brain Regions Involved in Decision Making
• Natural Fat Compound May Be Basis For New Class of Drug Targeting Obesity and Other Compulsive Disorders, Including Addiction
• Study Investigates Short-Term Effects of Marijuana Use on HIV+ Patients
• Scientists Seek To Identify Patterns in Injection Drug Users

December 19, 2003 - Teen Drug Abuse Declines Across Wide Front. HHS Secretary Tommy G. Thompson and John P. Walters, Director of National Drug Control Policy, released the results of the 2003 Monitoring the Future survey, showing an 11 percent decline in drug use by 8th, 10th, and 12th grade students over the past two years. The finding translates into 400,000 fewer teen drug users over two years.

January 5, 2004 - New Study Suggests Methamphetamine Withdrawal is Associated with Brain Changes Similar to Those Seen in Depression and Anxiety. Results of a new study indicate that people who have recently stopped abusing the powerfully addictive drug methamphetamine may have brain abnormalities similar to those seen in people with mood disorders. The findings suggest practitioners could improve success rates for methamphetamine users receiving addiction treatment by also providing therapy for depression and anxiety in appropriate individuals. The study was published in the January 2004 issue of the journal Archives of General Psychiatry.

January 13, 2004 - Timothy P. Condon Named Deputy Director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse. Dr. Timothy Condon has been named Deputy Director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), a component of the National Institutes of Health. Dr. Condon will assist in developing, implementing, and managing NIDA's programs, priorities, resources, policies and research dissemination efforts. In addition, he will continue to serve as director of the Institute's Office of Science Policy and Communications.

January 22, 2004 - NIDA NewsScan #28

• Animal Models of Adolescent Drug Abuse: Integrative Studies of Brain and Behavioral Development
• Behavioral and Cognitive Processes Related to Adolescent Drug Use
• Prevention Research for the Transition to Adulthood
• Medications Development for Cannabis-Related Disorders
• HIV/AIDS, Severe Mental Illness, and Homelessness
• National Cooperative Drug Discovery Groups for the Treatment of Mood Disorders or Nicotine Addiction
• Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Awards for Individual Predoctoral Fellows

February 19, 2004 - "Virtual Reality: Opportunities for the NIH". Virtual reality technologies are proving to be an important new tool in medical science. The National Institute on Drug Abuse, National Institutes of Health, hosted the symposium "Virtual Reality: Opportunities for the NIH" to highlight the latest scientific findings on the current and potential roles for virtual reality technologies in medicine.

March 1, 2004 - NIDA Study Finds Alcohol Treatment Medication, Behavioral Therapy Effective for Treating Cocaine Addiction. Results of a study funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), National Institutes of Health, suggest that disulfiram, a medication used to treat alcohol addiction, is effective in combating cocaine abuse. The researchers also conclude in the same study that combining disulfiram with behavioral therapy provides more positive results in treating cocaine dependence than disulfiram in combination with another form of therapy. The research was published in the March 2004 issue of the Archives of General Psychiatry.

July 11, 2003 - NIDA NewsScan #24
Special Issue of NewsScan Focuses on NIDA Funding News

• NIDA to Fund Medication Development Units
• NIDA Seeks New Funding Solicitations for Proteomics Research
• Behavioral Therapies Program (PA-03-126)
• Women Gender Differences and Drug Abuse (PA-03-139)
• Cutting Edge Basic Research Awards (PAR-03-017)

March 17, 2004 - NIDA NewsScan #29

• Novelty-Seeking Teens May Be More Easily Influenced by Tobacco Advertisements
• Behavioral Symptoms May Indicate Increased Smoking Risk Among Adolescents
• Prevention Program Curbs Drug Abuse Among Middle-School Youth
• Long-Lasting Medication Shows Promise for Treatment of Heroin Addiction
• Buprenorphine May Help Those Addicted to Heroin and Cocaine
• Scientists Use Visual Attention Tool To Help Explain How Smoking Cues Affect Smokers

March 23, 2004 - Detroit to be Site of NIDA Blending Meeting. NIDA will host "Blending Clinical Practice & Research: Forging Partnerships in the Great Lakes States to Enhance Drug Addiction Treatment" at the Renaissance Marriott in Detroit, Michigan September 27-28, 2004. This 2-day conference will provide an opportunity for clinicians and researchers to examine cutting-edge findings about drug use and addiction and their application to clinical practice.

Dr. Nemeth-Coslett, DTR&D, continues to co-chair the Translationally Oriented Approaches, Devices and Strategies (TOADS) work-group. Two years of efforts to attract new-to-NIDA investigators have been substantially rewarded with more than two dozen applications for Phase I/Phase II SBIR grants and/or contracts, Cutting Edge Basic Research Awards (CEBRAs), and various R-type grants focusing on virtual reality. This NIDA Program has received a good bit of media attention from the AP, local TV broadcasts, a feature article in the Washingtonian (April 2004) and by JAMA.

Articles of Interest

December 25, 2003, JAMA- "Addiction Treatment Strives for Legitimacy" - Interview with Frank Vocci, Ph.D.

March 1, 2004, Washingtonian Magazine-"What Are You Afraid Of?" - Interview with David A. Thomas, Ph.D.

Exhibits/Conferences

Lonnie E. Mitchell Historic Black Colleges And Universities Substance Abuse Conference (HBCU): March 30 - April 2, 2004
American Counseling Association Annual Convention: March 31 - April 4, 2004
Association of Minority Health Professions Schools: April 7-9, 2004
Experimental Biology: April 17-21, 2004
American Society of Addiction Medicine: April 23-25, 2004
American Psychiatric Association: May 5-6, 2004
American Psychological Society: May 27-30, 2004
National Association of State Alcohol and Drug Abuse Directors/National Prevention Network: June 5-9, 2004
American Nurses Association: June 25-29, 2004
National Congress of Parents and Teachers: June 26-28, 2004
Association of Higher Education and Disability: July 13-17, 2004
American Psychological AssociationJuly 28 - August 1, 2004