Conditioning history and the reinforcing effects of drugs: comment on Alessi, Roll, Reilly, and Johanson (2002)

Opioid-related deaths in Ontario correctional facilities and penitentiaries (2009-2019)

The opioid crisis is a significant public health issue in North America that began in the 1990s with opioid-related deaths increasing each year. Although studies have been published regarding the incidence of opioid-related deaths in the general population, there is limited information regarding deaths in the prison population. To investigate the impact of the opioid epidemic in this vulnerable population, a retrospective study of all drug-related deaths that occurred in correctional facilities and penitentiaries in Ontario, Canada, between January 2009 and December 2019 was conducted. A total of 90 deaths were attributed to acute drug toxicity and the decedents ranged in age from 18 to 63 years and comprised 81 men and 9 women. The results of this study indicate the number of drug-related fatalities have increased by 375% (from 4 to 19) over the last 11 years. The detection of opioids in drug-related deaths has increased with fentanyl being the most frequently detected drug. Data also indicates the recent emergence of fentanyl-related analogues in this population. The results from this study provide valuable information about drug-related deaths in the Ontario prison system and provide insight into how the opioid crisis and the increased use of fentanyl and its analogues have affected this vulnerable population.

Effects of Conditioned Reward and Nonreward Cues on the Heart Rate Response to Alcohol Intoxication in Male Social Drinkers

BACKGROUND

An exaggerated heart rate (HR) increase following alcohol intoxication has been suggested to reflect sensitivity to alcohol-induced reward. The goal of this study is to verify whether pairing alcohol ingestion with conditioned reward and nonreward cues can influence HR responses to alcohol in previously identified individuals with a low and a high HR response.

METHODS

Fifty-six male social drinkers participated in a 2-day study. On day 1, participants consumed 0.75 g/kg of body weight of pure ethanol. A median split of the alcohol-induced HR responses identified groups of low and high HR responders. On day 2, both groups participated while sober in a computer task where distinct auditory and visual cues were paired either with monetary reward or no monetary reward. Subsequently, participants were randomly assigned to an alcohol challenge, which occurred while they were exposed to either the conditioned cues of reward or to the nonreward cues.

RESULTS

The physiological response to alcohol intoxication on day 2 was compared with alcohol-induced HR responses on day 1 (neutral alcohol challenge) for both low and high HR responders. Paired t-tests showed that high HR responders had significantly decreased alcohol-induced HR responses on day 2 in the nonreward condition when compared with day 1. No other relationships between cardiac responses to alcohol and cue conditions were obtained.

CONCLUSIONS

The rewarding nature of alcohol can be altered by the context in which it is consumed in a subset of individuals who are sensitive to alcohol's stimulating properties.