Cognitive impairment, commonly found among substance abusers, may reduce the effectiveness of manualized psychosocial treatments. If so, tailoring such treatments to the patients' needs should improve effectiveness. The goal of this mentored clinical scientist award is to enhance the developing clinical research skills of Efrat Aharonovich, Ph.D. through research on cognitive deficits and manualized psychosocial treatments for substance abuse patients. In 2001, Dr. Aharonovich joined the faculty in the Division as Assistant Professor of Clinical Psychology in Psychiatry. Her pilot studies on cognitive functioning and treatment outcome in substance abuse patients provide preliminary support for her hypothesis that cognitive functioning affects treatment outcome. Dr. Aharonovich is co-PI on a NIDA-funded study of depressed heroin addicts, and she will shortly receive NIDA funds for an exploratory study of cognitive deficits and treatment outcome in non-depressed cocaine abusing patients. However, to become an independent clinical researcher, Dr. Aharonovich will need formal course work, mentoring, and release of time from her extensive clinical and administrative responsibilities so that she can concentrate on developing her own research. In the next several years, Dr. Aharonovich plans to conduct mentored formative research and clinical treatment trials of behavioral interventions modified for cognitively impaired substance abusers. This research and additional training will prepare Dr. Aharonovich well to meet her long-term research career goal of improving the effectiveness of behavioral interventions for substance abuse patients. Under the sponsorship and guidance of Dr. Edward Nunes, together with other Columbia University faculty, Dr. Aharonovich's training plan combines formal course work with clinical research experience. She will work closely with several preceptors to receive training in the following areas: methods of conducting clinical treatment trials, neuropsychological assessment batteries for substance abusers, instrument development, study design and interpretation, and biostatistics. Her research plan includes a study of the effects of cognitive deficits on the outcome of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) in substance abuse patients, the use of this information to tailor CBT for cognitively impaired substance abuse patients, and a randomized clinical trial of the effectiveness of the modified CBT. The combined mentoring, training and research plan will provide Dr. Aharonovich with unique training, and will afford her the opportunity to develop an independent clinical research career focused on the development of new behavioral approaches to the treatment of substance abuse disorders.

Agency
National Institute of Health (NIH)
Institute
National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA)
Type
Mentored Patient-Oriented Research Career Development Award (K23)
Project #
5K23DA016743-03
Application #
6892948
Study Section
Special Emphasis Panel (ZDA1-KXA-N (12))
Program Officer
Grossman, Debra
Project Start
2003-09-10
Project End
2008-04-30
Budget Start
2005-05-01
Budget End
2006-04-30
Support Year
3
Fiscal Year
2005
Total Cost
$177,055
Indirect Cost
Name
Columbia University (N.Y.)
Department
Psychiatry
Type
Schools of Medicine
DUNS #
621889815
City
New York
State
NY
Country
United States
Zip Code
10032
Shmulewitz, Dvora; Meyers, Jacquelyn L; Wall, Melanie M et al. (2016) CHRNA5/A3/B4 Variant rs3743078 and Nicotine-Related Phenotypes: Indirect Effects Through Nicotine Craving. J Stud Alcohol Drugs 77:227-37
Jobes, Michelle L; Aharonovich, Efrat; Epstein, David H et al. (2015) Effects of Prereactivation Propranolol on Cocaine Craving Elicited by Imagery Script/Cue Sets in Opioid-dependent Polydrug Users: A Randomized Study. J Addict Med 9:491-8
Meyers, Jacquelyn L; Shmulewitz, Dvora; Wall, Melanie M et al. (2015) Childhood adversity moderates the effect of ADH1B on risk for alcohol-related phenotypes in Jewish Israeli drinkers. Addict Biol 20:205-14
Kilcoyne, Bari; Shmulewitz, Dvora; Meyers, Jacquelyn L et al. (2014) Alcohol consumption mediates the relationship between ADH1B and DSM-IV alcohol use disorder and criteria. J Stud Alcohol Drugs 75:635-42
Walsh, Kate; Elliott, Jennifer C; Shmulewitz, Dvora et al. (2014) Trauma exposure, posttraumatic stress disorder and risk for alcohol, nicotine, and marijuana dependence in Israel. Compr Psychiatry 55:621-30
Meyers, Jacquelyn L; Shmulewitz, Dvora; Elliott, Jennifer C et al. (2014) Parental alcohol history differentially predicts offspring disorders in distinct subgroups in Israel. J Stud Alcohol Drugs 75:859-69
Samet, Sharon; Fenton, Miriam C; Nunes, Edward et al. (2013) Effects of independent and substance-induced major depressive disorder on remission and relapse of alcohol, cocaine and heroin dependence. Addiction 108:115-23
Shmulewitz, D; Wall, M M; Aharonovich, E et al. (2013) Validity of proposed DSM-5 diagnostic criteria for nicotine use disorder: results from 734 Israeli lifetime smokers. Psychol Med 43:2179-90
Meyers, Jacquelyn L; Shmulewitz, Dvora; Aharonovich, Efrat et al. (2013) Alcohol-metabolizing genes and alcohol phenotypes in an Israeli household sample. Alcohol Clin Exp Res 37:1872-81
Aharonovich, Efrat; Greenstein, Eliana; O'Leary, Ann et al. (2012) HealthCall: technology-based extension of motivational interviewing to reduce non-injection drug use in HIV primary care patients - a pilot study. AIDS Care 24:1461-9

Showing the most recent 10 out of 23 publications