Career Goals: The candidate is a psychiatrist whose goal is to expand her research and academic activities in the field of addiction medicine. Her immediate career goal is to obtain the training and experience necessary for becoming an independent investigator. Her professional goal is to become an academic resource in the field of addiction with a focus on evaluation of medications. Research Career Development Plan: The candidate proposes to obtain a Master of Science (M.S.) in Clinical Research Design and Statistical Analysis (CRDSA) from the University of Michigan School of Public Health. This program is designed specifically for physicians and other health care professionals involved in clinical research. In addition to this coursework, the applicant's career development plan draws on the resources of a large, well established addiction research group, the Integrated Substance Abuse Program (ISAP) at UCLA, and includes a program of supervision by experts in their respective fields in the qualitative and quantitative aspects of study design and methodology. Description of the research projects: The proposed research plan is designed to objectively describe signs and symptoms of GHB withdrawal, identify predictors of withdrawal severity and treatment response, and develop and validate treatment guidelines for GHB withdrawal. There has been a sharp rise in the number of GHB related emergency room visits in the United States over the past few years, yet little is known about effective treatment of GHB withdrawal and dependence. The signs and symptoms of GHB withdrawal begin one to six hours after last use, and may escalate rapidly and unpredictably to delirium, agitation, and psychosis. Given the rapid, progressive and serious nature of GHB withdrawal symptoms, there is a crucial need to develop improved treatments. There has been little systematic study of the signs and symptoms of withdrawal, and controlled studies on the effectiveness of treatment of these symptoms are lacking.
