Attentional bias for drug cues in opiate dependence.
BACKGROUND
In a number of theories of compulsive drug use conditioned responses to stimuli associated with drug taking play a pivotal role. For example, according to incentive-sensitization theory (Robinson & Berridge, 1993), drug-related stimuli selectively capture attention, and the neural mechanisms underlying this attentional bias play a key role in the development and maintenance of drug dependence, and in relapse. However, there has been little work that assesses attentional biases in addiction.


METHODS
We used a pictorial probe detection task to investigate whether there is an attentional bias to stimuli associated with drug use in opiate dependence. Stimuli presented included pairs of drug-related and matched neutral pictures. Methadone-maintained opiate addicts (N = 16) were compared with age-matched controls (N = 16).


RESULTS
A mixed design analysis of variance of response times to probes revealed a significant three-way interaction of group x drug picture location x probe location. Opiate addicts had relatively faster reaction times to probes that replaced drug pictures rather than neutral pictures, consistent with the predicted attentional bias to drug-related stimuli.


CONCLUSIONS
These results support the idea that an attentional bias for drug-related stimuli occurs in opiate dependence. This is consistent with the concept of a central role for such salient stimuli in compulsive drug use.
Lubman
D I
DI
Neuroscience and Psychiatry Unit, University of Manchester.
Peters
L A
LA
Mogg
K
K
Bradley
B P
BP
Deakin
J F
JF
D000328:Adult; D001288:Attention; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009294:Narcotics; D009293:Opioid-Related Disorders / Q000503:physiopathology*; D014796:Visual Perception
D009294:Narcotics