José Luis Carballo

Effects of voucher-based intervention on abstinence and retention in an outpatient treatment for cocaine addiction: a randomized controlled trial.

The aims of this study were to assess whether voucher magnitude improved cocaine abstinence and retention in an outpatient treatment for cocaine dependence, and to determine the effectiveness of a contingency management intervention in a European cultural context. A randomized controlled trial was conducted in which 96 participants who were randomly assigned to 1 of 3 treatment conditions in a community setting: standard outpatient treatment, community reinforcement approach (CRA) plus low monetary value vouchers (each point earned was equivalent to 0.125 Euro, US

Síntomas de trastornos de ansiedad en niños y adolescentes: Diferencias en función de la edad y el sexo en una muestra comunitaria

0.18), and CRA plus high monetary value vouchers (each point was worth 0.25 Euro, US

Spanish version of the Sleep Self-Report (SSR): factorial structure and psychometric properties

0.36). In the standard treatment group, mean percentage of cocaine-negative samples was 88.45%, versus 96.09% in the CRA plus low-vouchers group, and 97.07% in the CRA plus high-vouchers group. Retention rate at 6 months was 36.5% in the standard treatment group, 53.3% in the CRA plus low-vouchers group, and 69.0% in the CRA plus high-vouchers group. The CRA plus vouchers groups obtained better results than the standard program. This study showed that treating cocaine addiction by combining CRA with vouchers was more effective than standard treatment in community outpatient programs in Spain.

Spanish adaptation and validation of the Barratt Impulsiveness Scale for early adolescents (BIS-11-A)

INTRODUCTION Anxiety symptoms in childhood and adolescence are an important risk factor for developing anxiety disorders in subsequent development stages. This study examines the frequency and characteristics of the symptoms of the principal anxiety disorders in children and adoloscents using a self-report questionnaire based on the diagnostic categories of the American Psychiatric Association (APA) manual. MATERIAL AND METHODS A cross-sectional, non-interventional study was conducted on 2522 children and adolescents form 8 to 17 years (49% males), enrolled from different schools in the Province of Alicante who completed the Spence Childrens Anxiety Scale. RESULTS The mean score obtained on the scale (range: 0-114) was 25.15 (standard deviation (SD)=13.54). More than one in four (26.41%) of the children and adolescents showed high scores in any anxiety disorder. The anxiety symptoms due to separation were the most frequent in the sample (5.5%), followed by physical fears (5.1%). Girls scored significantly higher in all disorders (P<.001), except in obsessive-compulsive disorder. Differences were found as regards age in all disorders, except physical fears, but the effect sizes were only in anxiety due to separation, which decreased with age, and generalised anxiety, which was higher in adolescents than in children. CONCLUSIONS From the mental health perspective, it is important to be able to detect anxiety symptoms in children from 8 years onwards, in order to intervene early and prevent the development of anxiety disorders in later life.

Sexual behaviour under the influence of alcohol among Spanish adolescents

BACKGROUND The Sleep Self-Report (SSR) is a questionnaire initially created for use with a sample from the USA to assess sleep patterns and problems in school-aged children. The objective of this study was to validate the SSR among a Spanish sample. METHODS Participants were 1228 Spanish children from 8 to 12 years of age who completed the questionnaires at school anonymously. RESULTS Internal consistency was good (ω = 0.85). Convergent validity with anxiety (r = 0.54) and perceived welfare (r = -0.53) measures, and divergent validity with a measure of academic performance and positive influence of peers (r = -0.22) were acceptable. Exploratory analysis suggested a factorial structure composed by four subscales: sleep quality, sleep anxiety, bedtime refusal and sleep routines. Confirmatory analysis indicated a good fit for the model (RMSEA = 0.04; GFI = 0.95; AGFI = 0.93; χ(2)/gl = 2.48). CONCLUSIONS The SSR has demonstrated to have good psychometric properties in the Spanish-speaking sample of children. The factorial structure supported by exploratory and confirmatory analysis examines the most relevant areas of sleep in children. The satisfactory psychometric properties support the use of the Spanish version of the SSR by researchers and clinicians.

Eficacia de un programa de prevención cognitivo-conductual breve del rechazo social en niños

Impulsivity has been associated with several psychiatric disorders such as substance abuse. The Barratt Impulsiveness Scale (BIS-11) is one of the most commonly administered self-reports for the assessment of impulsiveness in both research and clinical settings. There is a version for adolescents called BIS-11-A, which has not been yet properly adapted to Spanish population. The goal of this study is to offer an alternative and more adequate Spanish version of the BIS-1-A, as well as to assess its psychometric properties including factor structure, reliability and predictive validity regarding substance use (last month alcohol, tobacco and cannabis use, presence of last month intoxication, binge drinking and problem drinking). The BIS-11-A and items from the European School Survey Project on Alcohol and other Drugs (ESPAD) were applied to1,183 students (aged 12-14) at 16 Spanish secondary schools. The BIS-11-A showed a bidimensional factor structure, high reliability (Cronbachs alpha = .87) and good capacity for identifying substance use, binge drinking and problem drinking (sensitivity = 67.3-75%; specificity = 83.4-85.4%). The BIS-11-A Spanish version is a reliable and valid instrument for be used among early adolescents.

Effectiveness and efficiency of methodology for recruiting participants in natural recovery from alcohol and drug addiction

Este trabajo tiene como objetivo comparar el comportamiento sexual y los factores protectores y de riesgo entre adolescentes que mantienen relaciones sexuales bajo la influencia del alcohol y los que no lo hacen, y determinar los factores predictores de la combinacion sexo y drogas. Se analizaron las diferencias entre estos dos grupos en comportamiento sexual, actitud hacia el VIH, norma subjetiva y conocimientos sobre el VIH. Mediante medidas de autoinforme fueron evaluados 1216 adolescentes espanoles entre 14 y 18 anos (M = 15.92, DT = .76), fueron seleccionados 297 por ser sexualmente activos. De estos, 117 informaron haber mantenido relaciones sexuales bajo la influencia del alcohol en los ultimos seis meses (51% fueron chicas). Los adolescentes que combinaron sexo y alcohol se implicaron en mayor medida en sexo vaginal, sexo oral y sexo anal respecto a los que no lo hicieron. Haber mantenido relaciones sexuales bajo la influencia del alcohol en los ultimos seis meses se relaciono con una actitud negativa hacia el uso del condon cuando existen obstaculos para su uso y menor uso consistente del preservativo. No hubo diferencias en el conocimiento sobre el VIH entre ambos grupos. Los adolescentes que combinaron sexo y alcohol presentaron en mayor medida caracteristicas asociadas con el riesgo sexual. Las medidas preventivas deben atender a las caracteristicas particulares de este grupo de riesgo. Se requiere mayor evidencia de los efectos del alcohol sobre el comportamiento sexual.

The association of both self-reported and behavioral impulsivity with the annual prevalence of substance use among early adolescents

Los programas de prevencion del rechazo social en la infancia son todavia muy escasos. El objetivo de este estudio fue evaluar los efectos de un programa de intervencion cognitivo-conductual breve basado en el desarrollo de competencias socio-emocionales, disenado para prevenir el rechazo social infantil y patologias asociadas. Para ello se siguio un diseno cuasiexperimental pretest-postest con grupo control no equivalente. La muestra se compuso de 94 estudiantes de 8 a 12 anos. El tratamiento consistio en un programa multicomponente cognitivo-conductual aplicado en grupo, con una frecuencia semanal y un total de 6 sesiones de 60 minutos cada una. Los resultados apoyaron la eficacia del programa de desarrollo de competencias infantil, obteniendo efectos positivos en las medidas de ansiedad, depresion, inteligencia emocional y estatus social del sociograma. Estos datos muestran la eficacia y necesidad de prevenir la aparicion del rechazo social y patologias asociadas en la infancia en el contexto escolar.

Short Health Anxiety Inventory: Factor structure and psychometric properties in Spanish adolescents:

The goal of this descriptive study is to analyse the effectiveness and efficiency in economic and temporal terms of different strategies for the recruitment of participants who have recovered without help from problems with alcohol and other drugs. Diverse recruitment strategies were implemented (press advertisements, publicizing through the media, posters, snowball technique and request for help from healthcare professionals) over a two-year period in two different countries, and the results compared in terms of effectiveness and efficiency in the recruitment of self-changers. This study was carried out in various regions of Spain and in South Florida (USA). With these strategies a total of 54 Spanish-speaking participants were recruited who had changed their consumption habits without therapeutic help, 29 of them in Spain and 25 in Florida. Economic cost and time spent for the implementation of each strategy were assessed. These costs were divided by the number of participants recruited in order to obtain the economic and temporal efficiency of each strategy. Effectiveness was analysed by means of the number of participants recruited. Advertisements emerged as the most effective and efficient strategy in terms of time, while posters was the most efficient strategy in economic terms. The recruitment of self-changers is one of the greatest obstacles facing studies that set out to analyse self-change in drug use. The economic and temporal costs are high. Further work is needed to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of recruitment strategies with the aim of optimizing the resources employed in studies on natural recovery in addictive behaviours.

Health-related quality of life across weight categories in childhood

BackgroundIn relation to substance use, Spanish adolescents aged 12 to 14 can be largely classified in four groups, from highest to lowest prevalence: a) No substance use, b) Only alcohol use, c) Alcohol and tobacco use, and d) Alcohol, tobacco and cannabis use. The aim of the present study is to analyze the possible relationship between impulsivity and the substance-use group to which the young person belongsMethodsOne thousand three hundred and forty-eight adolescents aged 12 to 14 in northern and eastern Spain reported their drug use, completed impulsivity self-reports (BIS-11-A and ImpSS) and performed behavioral tasks (Stroop Test and Delay Discounting).ResultsResults from both measurement approaches were related to early drug use. An increasing impulsivity trend is found across groups from less to more substance involvement, except in the case of Delay Discounting, which is sensitive only for those with more substance-involved.ConclusionsImpulsivity is a key factor for early drug use, especially as regards more substance-involved. This should be taken into account in designing prevention programs or as a key variable for interventions aimed at delaying the onset of substance use.