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Imagery scripts and a computerized subtraction stress task both induce stress in methamphetamine users: a controlled
Kathleen J Garrison1, Jeremy R Coyle, Matthew J Baggott
1Addiction and Pharmacology Research Laboratory, California Pacific Medical Center Research Institute, 3555 Cesar Chavez Street, San Francisco, CA 94110, USA.
Abstract:
Patients treated for methamphetamine (MA) dependence have a high rate of relapse, and stress is thought to play a key role. We sought to develop a computerized procedure for experimentally inducing stress in MA users. In a within-subjects design, we compared a computerized subtraction stress task (SST) to personalized stress-imagery scripts and a control condition (neutral imagery) in 9 former MA users, recruited in San Francisco in 2006-2007. We assessed blood hormone levels, anxiety and craving for MA on visual analog scales, and the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule and made linear mixed-effects models to analyze the results. Both the SST and stress scripts were effective in inducing self-report markers of stress in MA users. Because the SST is easily reproducible and requires less time of staff and participants, it may be a useful alternative for measuring stress reactivity in drug users.
