News
Using Imaging to Assess Effects of THC on Brain Activity
The goal of this project was to develop, test, and refine a method to accurately and reliably detect marijuana (MJ) impairment using a portable, user-friendly, non-invasive, brain-based modality. The development of a fair, reliable, quantitative biological marker that enables law enforcement officers to screen individuals whom they suspect are impaired from MJ will have highly significant public health importance.
The Effect of Cannabis on Cognition and Neuroimaging in those with PTSD
Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) has the highest lifetime prevalence of all anxiety disorders (8-9%), shows high rates of comorbidity with MDD, and is a critical predictor of suicidality. Increasingly, PTSD patients are seeking alternative treatments to current interventions, many of which have not been proven to be effective and may in fact be harmful. The…MORE
The Effect of Cannabis on Cognition and Neuroimaging in those with Major Depressive Disorder
The prevalence of use of MJ among those with Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) is unknown, but MDD is the third most common reason for individuals to seek medical MJ, after pain and insomnia. It is therefore of critical importance to understand the effects of MJ use and MDD on brain function, particularly in young adults.…MORE
Effect of Medical Marijuana on Neurocognition and Escalation of Use
The purpose of this study is to evaluate the the effect of medical marijuana (MM) on a range of outcomes, including clinical symptoms, cognitive performance, brain function, and possible transition to cannabis use disorders (CUD), in adults who are interested in using medical marijuana to treat pain, insomnia, depression, or anxiety. We will conduct longitudal…MORE
Examining the Effectiveness of a Peer-support Model for Parents and Caregivers of Addicted Loved Ones
This study aims to assess the subjective benefits of participation in face-to-face meetings for both Learn to Cope affiliates and their family members with addiction problems; to examine the extent to which Learn to Cope is associated with improving its members’ understanding of and competence in dealing with their loved ones’ addiction as well as…MORE
Mentoring in Patient-Oriented Addiction Research
This grant is designed to develop specific content expertise in treatment and recovery policy, and the design, implementation, and evaluation of treatment and recovery support service combinations. This grant also allows for mentoring junior investigators in patient-orientated addiction research (POAR).
Recovery Research Institute (RRI)
Some of the RRI projects include building and maintaining a website in order to provide a credible source of information to debunk addiction and recovery myths, and provide free access to the latest recovery research information; building and evaluating recovery support programs in the community; building and evaluating recovery support programs in educational settings such…MORE
Cognition and Adolescent Health
The purpose of this study is to provide updated information on prevalence and frequency of cannabis use in relation to other forms of substance use in a representative sample of high-school aged adolescents, to evaluate the effect of contingency management on initial 30-day verified cannabis abstinence in adolescents and older adolescents who use cannabis at…MORE
Web-based Survey of Individuals Interested in Using Medical Marijuana
The aims of this study are to characterize the most common illnesses for which MM is sought, the reasons for seeking MM, reasons for hesitance to use and to characterize current marijuana use habits of those interested in using MM.
Using Imaging to Assess Effects of THC on Brain Activity
The aim of this study is to assess the effects of THC intoxication using the medication dronabinol (synthetic THC) on resting state and task-based activation in the prefrontal cortex (PFC), as well as on neurocognitive task performance and correlations between these measurements and clinical signs of intoxication, as well as to investigate at which doses…MORE