Looking for Alcohol Treatment Information?

You can receive independent, expert advice on alcohol rehabilitation and rehab centres by telephoning DryOutNow.com on 0845 370 0203.

The most important consideration in choosing a rehab centre is to match the individual to the rehab centre that is most likely to lead to a successful outcome.

DryOutNow.com can provide an assessment of all your needs and a recommendation regarding the most effective rehab placement for you, given your particular circumstances. We can provide fast, immediate access to alcohol treatment.

Alcohol Treatment Research: Denial in drug addiction may be explained by insight deficit

Drug abusers are often characterised as being in "denial" - not recognizing the severity of their disorder. Although "denial" is often considered to be a form of deception, emerging research suggests that it may be due to a specific brain dysfunction similar to that observed in other neuropsychiatric illnesses.

Scientists from a variety of fields presented relevant research during a symposium on "Impaired Insight into Illness in Drug Addiction" at the Society for Neuroscience annual meeting in Washington, D.C.
"The more we understand about the brain mechanisms affected by drugs of abuse and that underlie addiction, the better equipped we will be to address its complex and difficult-to-treat symptoms, including relapse triggered by exposure to cues outside of conscious awareness, and altered perceptions of internal responses and cognitive performance," said Nora D. Volkow, Director of NIDA, who will serve as a discussant at the symposium. "This knowledge will lead to the development of more responsive, integrated treatments."

Brookhaven's Goldstein explains the idea of impaired insight and how it might relate to drug addiction: "Patients suffering from mental illnesses such as schizophrenia often have compromised awareness of their own symptoms and the severity of their disorder. This compromise can exacerbate symptoms and reduce responsiveness to or compliance with treatment," she said. This "insight deficit" appears to originate from impairments in many of the same brain regions that underlie addiction symptoms - such as continued drug use despite catastrophic consequences, even when the drug is no longer pleasurable.

"It is therefore possible that these core clinical addiction symptoms - craving and compulsion and the chronic relapsing nature of addiction - may be a consequence of compromised insight," Goldstein said. Such impaired insight might help explain why drug-addicted patients often have a hard time recognizing, accepting, and/or acknowledging their own signs and symptoms of addiction, as well as the need for treatment. It could also help explain these patients' failure to comply fully with treatment regimens - and their tendency to relapse.

"Deficits in insight and interoception [sensitivity to the body's internal signals] and emotional awareness have largely been ignored in the field of addiction, despite the fact that this disorder is finally recognized as a disease of the brain, amenable to intervention and treatment," Goldstein said. "My hope is that this symposium will help bridge this gap and contribute to the design of new diagnostic tools and treatment approaches, pointing us toward more effective intervention strategies to improve prognosis in this illness."

DryOutNow.com provides highly practical help for people with alcohol problems, their friends and relatives. DryOutNow.com also provides free resources for healthcare professionals such as medical information and alcohol treatment guidelines.

Other Alcohol Treatment Research Articles

• Poor Alcohol Regulation could cost up to 250,000 lives, doctors predict.
• Technology improves treatment options for drug users
• Department promoting early substance use screening process
• Alcohol tax increases deter drinking
• DrugScope welcomes report on 'neglected issue' of prescription and over-the-counter medication depen
• DrugScope responds to NTA figures on young people in treatment for substance misuse
• Concerns over trends in Ketamine use
• Try science when 'just saying no' isn't enough
• More action needed to tackle alcohol misuse, says BMA
• Alkermes initiates clinical trial for ALKS 33, a novel oral molecule with potential benefits in addi
• Genetic markers identified for alcohol response in UCSF Gallo study
• NIDA Monitoring the Future Survey, Results published
• Technology can help addicts trying to quit
• Study assesses success of anti meth adverts
• All patients should be asked about alcohol and drug abuse, says The American College of Obstetrician
• Researchers must tap into the language of intoxication
• Report points to lack of public awareness of health guidelines
• Reward stress link points to new targets for treating addiction
• SAMHSA releases new data on drug related hospital emergency department visits
• National rates of co occurring substance use and mental disorders call for better integration of men

Latest Alcohol Policy Related Articles

• Leeds counts 438GBP million economic and social cost of alcohol-related problems
• Pablo and FRANK - the new cocaine campaign
• Cannabis upgraded to Class B drug
• DrugScope welcomes report on 'neglected issue' of prescription and over-the-counter medication depen
• Tougher health and safety law demands tougher drugs policies, says drug testing company
• Time's up for irresponsible drink deals
• More action needed to tackle alcohol misuse, says BMA
• New report reveals that five million people participate in self help groups each year
• Make Scotlands roads safer, reduce drink driving limits, says BMA Scotland
• Study will seek to break cycle of chemical dependence and incarceration
• More advice on alcohol and healthy living from UK Department of Health
• Working towards recovery, Getting problem drug users into jobs, UKDPC report released
• More support needed for employers to hire addicts, says research
• Study shows link between number of alcohol retailers and youth injuries
• European project to study relationship between ADHD and substance abuse
• Two few treatments centres says former government adviser
• BMA Scotland recently published an action plan to tackle alcohol misuse
• WHO to hold public hearing on ways of reducing the harmful use of alcohol
• Public policy measures on alcohol price and availability would be more effective than clinical treat
• Licensing act could be affecting alcohol-related hospital admissions