Pain and alcohol consumption in virtual reality

Area of Science:

• Psychology
• Neuroscience
• Addiction Research

Background:

• Situational pain can precede alcohol consumption, potentially leading to problematic drinking.
• Understanding the interplay between pain and alcohol use is crucial for addiction research.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the impact of painful thermal stimuli on drinking behavior in a controlled virtual reality setting.
• To explore psychosocial factors influencing individual differences in pain-induced alcohol consumption.

Main Methods:

• A pilot study involving 20 participants who underwent alcohol self-administration in a virtual bar.
• Exposure to either painful heat (44 °C) or nonnoxious warmth (38 °C) during drinking sessions.
• Measurement of sip interval and sip volume, analyzed using multilevel models.

Main Results:

• A significant interaction between pain condition and sex affected sip interval; painful heat decreased sip interval in men but not women.
• No significant effect of pain on sip volume was observed.
• Exploratory analyses revealed pain effects were amplified by negative urgency and mitigated by pain catastrophizing.

Conclusions:

• Acute pain has sex-specific effects on drinking topography, with men drinking faster under painful heat.
• Individuals with greater negative urgency may be at higher risk for hazardous alcohol use when experiencing pain.