Studies to Examine Facets of Alcohol Use/Dependence

BUFFALO, N.Y. -- Grants from the National Institutes of Health will fund studies by researchers at the University at Buffalo's Research Institute on Addictions aimed at reducing oral disease in individuals undergoing inpatient treatment for alcohol dependence and investigating the relationship between substance use and sexual risk behavior in teen-age girls.

Senior Research Scientist Kurt H. Dermen, Ph.D., will focus on oral disease in a three-year study funded by an award of $598,000 from the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research (NIDCR).

Research Scientist Jennifer A. Livingston, Ph.D. will study teen-age girls with a Mentored Research Scientist Development Award of $531,904 from the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA). It will support five years of research, as well as Livingston's professional development.

Dermen said the goal of his study is improving personal oral hygiene and the use of oral health and preventive treatment services by individuals undergoing inpatient treatment for alcohol dependence.

"We will accomplish this with the development of a motivational oral and dental-health promotion intervention targeted specifically at individuals in alcohol treatment programs," he noted.

In a later phase, researchers will conduct a pilot trial of the motivational intervention.

Dermen's colleagues on the study are Gerard J. Connors, Ph.D., senior research scientist and director of RIA, as well as a professor in the Department of Psychology in the UB College of Arts and Sciences, and Sebastian Ciancio, D.D.S., director of the Center for Dental Studies and SUNY Distinguished Service Professor and chair in the Department of Periodontics and Endodontics, UB School of Dental Medicine.

Livingston, a research scientist with a background in women's alcohol use, sexual risk behavior, and the prevention of sexual assault, said sexually active adolescent females as a group are at higher risk of being sexually victimized and contracting sexually transmitted diseases, including HIV.

In the first phase of her study, Livingston will conduct focus groups with 14-17 year old girls to understand how teens perceive risks related to drinking and sexual activity, and how their perceptions influence the risks they take.

In the second phase, she will conduct interviews with 18- and 19-year-old women regarding their high-school experiences with alcohol, drugs, and sex. Livingston added, "Here we're hoping to gain an understanding of the factors that may influence adolescent girls to initiate drinking and sexual behavior. We also will examine the relationship between the initiation of risky behavior and experiencing negative sexual outcomes, such as sexual victimization and STD/HIV infection."

Livingston's mentors on the project are Maria Testa, Ph.D., RIA senior research scientist, adjunct associate professor in the School of Social Work, and research associate professor in the UB Department of Psychology, and Michael Windle, Ph.D., professor of psychology and director of the Center for Advancement of Youth Health at the University of Alabama, Birmingham.

The Research Institute on Addictions has been a leader in the study of addictions since 1970 and a research center of the University at Buffalo since 1999.

The University at Buffalo is a premier research-intensive public university, the largest and most comprehensive campus in the State University of New York.