This study examined the association between two specific polymorphisms of the gene encoding the m-opioid receptor and treatment outcomes in alcohol-dependent patients who were prescribed naltrexone or placebo. A total of 82 patients (71 of European descent) who were randomized to naltrexone and 59 who were randomized to placebo (all of European descent) in one of three randomized, placebo-controlled clinical trials of naltrexone were genotyped at the A +118 G (Asn40Asp) and C +17 T (Ala6Val) SNPs in the gene encoding the m-opioid receptor (OPRM1). The association between genotype and drinking outcomes was measured over 12 weeks of treatment. In subjects of European descent, individuals with one or two copies of the Asp40 allele treated with naltrexone had significantly lower rates of relapse (p ¼ 0.044) and a longer time to return to heavy drinking (p ¼ 0.040) than those homozygous for the Asn40 allele. There were no differences in overall abstinence rates (p ¼ 0.611), nor were there differences in relapse rates or abstinence rates between the two genotype groups among those assigned to placebo. These preliminary results are consistent with prior literature demonstrating that the opioid system is involved in the reinforcing properties of alcohol and that allelic variation at OPRM1 is associated with differential response to a m-receptor antagonist. If replicated, these results would help to identify alcohol-dependent individuals who may be most likely to respond to treatment with naltrexone.

Interventions often involve a sequence of decisions. For example, clinicians frequently adapt the intervention to an individual’s outcomes. Altering the intensity and type of intervention over time is crucial for many reasons, such as to obtain improvement if the individual is not responding or to reduce costs and burden when intensive treatment is no longer necessary. Adaptive interventions utilize individual variables (severity, preferences) to adapt the intervention and then dynamically utilize individual outcomes (response to treatment, adherence) to readapt the intervention. The Sequential Multiple Assignment Randomized Trial (SMART)provides high-quality data that can be used to construct adaptive interventions. We review the SMART and highlight its advantages in constructing and revising adaptive interventions as compared to alternative experimental designs. Selected examples of SMART studies are described and compared. A data analysis method is provided and illustrated using data from the Extending Treatment Effectiveness of Naltrexone SMART study.

Existing evidence suggests that military veterans with mental health disorders have poorer family functioning, although little research has focused on this topic. Objective: To test whether psychiatric symptoms are associated with family reintegration problems in recently returned military veterans. Design: Cross-sectional survey of a clinical population. Respondents who were referred to behavioral health evaluation from April 2006 through August 2007 were considered for the survey.

Despite the availability of safe and efficacious treatments, mood disorders remain a significant health care issue for the elderly and are associated with disability, functional decline, diminished quality of life, mortality from comorbid medical conditions or suicide, demands on caregivers, and increased service utilization. Discriminatory coverage and reimbursement policies for mental health care are a challenge for the elderly, especially those with modest incomes, and for clinicians. Minorities are particularly underserved. Access to mental health care services for most elderly individuals is inadequate, and coordination of services is lacking. There is an immediate need for collaboration among patients, families, researchers, clinicians, governmental agencies, and third-party payers to improve diagnosis, treatment, and delivery of services for elderly persons with mood disorders.

Older primary care patients are more likely to accept collaborative mental health treatment within primary care than in mental health/substance abuse clinics. These results suggest that integrated service arrangements improve access to mental health and substance abuse services for older adults who underuse these services.

Objective-The PROSPECT Study evaluated the impact of a care management intervention on suicidal ideation and depression in older primary care patients. This is the first report of outcomes over a 2-year period.Method-The subjects (N=599) were older (>=60 years) patients with major or minor depression selected after screening 9,072 randomly identified patients of 20 primary care practices randomly assigned to the PROSPECT intervention or usual care. The intervention consisted of services of 15 trained care managers, who offered algorithm-based recommendations to physicians and helped patients with treatment adherence over 24 months. Results-Intervention patients had a higher likelihood to receive antidepressants and or psychotherapy (84.9-89% vs. 49-59%) and a 2.2 times greater decline in suicidal ideation than usual care patients over 24 months. Treatment response occurred earlier in intervention patients and continued to increase from the 18 th to the 24 th month, while there was no appreciable increase in usual care patients during the same period. Among patients with major depression, a greater number achieved remission in the intervention than the usual care group at 4 (26.6 vs. 15.2%), 8 (36% vs. 22.5%), and 24 (45.4% vs. 31.5%) months. Patients with minor depression had favorable outcomes regardless of treatment assignment.Conclusions-Sustained collaborative care maintains high utilization of antidepressant treatment, reduces suicidal ideation, and improves the outcomes of major depression over two years. These observations suggest that sustained collaborative care increases depression-free days.

clinicaltrials.gov Identifier: NCT00006489.

BACKGROUND Empirical evidence has only weakly supported antidepressant treatment for patients with co-occurring depression and alcohol dependence. While some studies have demonstrated that antidepressants reduce these patients’ depressive symptoms, most studies have not found antidepressants helpful in reducing excessive drinking in these patients. We provide results from a double blind, placebo-controlled trial that evaluated the efficacy of combining approved medications for depression (sertraline) and alcohol dependence (naltrexone) for treating patients with both disorders. METHODS 170 depressed, alcohol-dependent patients were randomized for 14 weeks to sertraline (200mg/day), naltrexone (100mg/day), the combination, or placebo, while receiving weekly cognitive behavioral therapy. RESULTS The sertraline + naltrexone combination produced a higher alcohol abstinence rate (53.7%; p = .001; odds ratio = 3.7), and a longer delay before relapse to heavy drinking (98 median days; p = .003; d = .54), than the other treatments: naltrexone (21.3% abstinent, 29 days), sertraline (27.5% abstinent, 23 days), or placebo (23.1% abstinent, 26 days). There also was a trend for more patients in the medication combination group not to be depressed by the end of treatment (83.3%; p = .014; odds ratio = 3.6), compared to the other treatments. The serious adverse event rate was 25.9%, with fewer reported by the medication combination group (11.9%; p < .02) than the other treatments. CONCLUSION More depressed, alcohol-dependent patients taking the sertraline + naltrexone combination achieved abstinence from alcohol, delayed relapse to heavy drinking, reported fewer serious adverse events, and tended not to be depressed by the end of treatment.