title: Does stress mediate the development of substance use disorders among youth transitioning to young adulthood?
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Stress is a well-documented factor in the development of addiction. However, no longitudinal studies to date have assessed the role of stress in mediating the development of substance use disorders (SUD). Our previous results have demonstrated that a measure called Transmissible Liability Index (TLI) assessed during pre-adolescent years serves as a significant predictor of risk for substance use disorder among young adults. However, it remains unclear whether life stress mediates the relationship between TLI and SUD, or whether stress predicts SUD.
  
  
  METHODS
  We conducted a longitudinal study involving 191 male subjects to assess whether life stress mediates the relationship between TLI as assessed at age 10-12 and subsequent development of SUD at age 22, after controlling for other relevant factors.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Logistic regression demonstrated that the development of SUD at age 22 was associated with stress at age 19. A path analysis demonstrated that stress at age 19 significantly predicted SUD at age 22. However, stress did not mediate the relationship between the TLI assessed at age 10-12 and SUD in young adulthood.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  These findings confirm that stress plays a role in the development of SUD, but also shows that stress does not mediate the development of SUD. Further studies are warranted to clarify the role of stress in the etiology of SUD.
authors.affiliation: Center for Education and Drug Abuse Research (CEDAR), University of Pittsburgh , Pittsburgh, PA 15213 , USA.
authors.forename: Jack
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Cornelius
authors.forename: Levent
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Kirisci
authors.forename: Maureen
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Reynolds
authors.forename: Ralph
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Tarter
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D002648:Child; D006801:Humans; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D012307:Risk Factors; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000150:complications* / Q000523:psychology; D019966:Substance-Related Disorders / Q000209:etiology* / Q000523:psychology; D055815:Young Adult
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