Semaglutide Shows Promise as a Potential Alcohol Use Disorder Medication

Intramural scientists at the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) and the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), and collaborators from The Scripps Research Institute, found that semaglutide reduces alcohol consumption and binge-like drinking in a rodent model of alcohol misuse. Published in the June 2023 issue of the journal JCI Insight, the study … Read more

Combining Screening, Brief Intervention, and Referral to Treatment With Recovery Management in Primary Care Settings Improves Outcomes

Alcohol screening, brief intervention, and referral to treatment (SBIRT) can be an effective method for identifying persons either at risk for or with alcohol-related problems and for connecting them to treatment. Recent data suggest, however, that while screening for alcohol misuse is common in primary care and other health care settings, patients are less likely … Read more

Alcohol-Related Problems Common, Yet Alcohol Use Disorder Undertreated

According to the 2019 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH), 14.5 million (nearly 15 million) people ages 12 and older met the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition (DSM-IV) criteria for past-year alcohol use disorder (AUD). Clearly, the scope of alcohol problems in the U.S. population is large. However, NSDUH data indicate that less than … Read more

New NIAAA Resource Helps Healthcare Professionals Provide Better Alcohol-Related Care

The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) has released The Healthcare Professional’s Core Resource on Alcohol (HPCR) to help healthcare professionals provide evidence-based care for people who drink alcohol. Created with busy clinicians in mind, the HPCR provides concise, thorough information designed to help them integrate alcohol care into their practice. Healthcare professionals can earn … Read more

NESARC-III genetic data now available to researchers

The NIAAA announces the release of genetic data collected from individuals who participated in NIAAA’s National Epidemiologic Survey on Alcohol and Related Conditions-III (NESARC-III), the largest study ever conducted on alcohol use and alcohol use disorder (AUD), and its co-occurrence with drug use, substance use disorders (SUD), and related psychiatric conditions. The NESARC-III is a … Read more

NIAAA celebrates 50 years of advancing alcohol research with scientific symposium

This December marks the 50th anniversary of the creation of the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA). Over the past five decades, NIAAA-funded researchers have made tremendous progress in advancing the understanding of how alcohol impacts health. NIAAA Director George F. Koob, Ph.D., comments, “While we have much more work to do, today … Read more