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Objective: The authors describe the epidemiology of risk behavior associated with poly-drug use in a college bar district of a large campus community. Participants: A total of 469 bar patrons participated in the study. Methods: The authors used self-report data and biological measures collected from patrons outside bars in July and August of 2007. Results: The mean breath alcohol concentration of the exiting patrons was 0.09. Illicit and prescription drug use on the nights of data collection and in the recent past were significant features of the profile of patron risk behavior. About one-quarter of the patrons using only alcohol reported an intention to drive a vehicle within 60 minutes of leaving an establishment, compared with almost one-half of those using both alcohol and marijuana. Conclusions: A substantial amount of high-risk behavior was generated from the bar district on 4 typical nights. College bar districts should be a priority focus for prevention efforts. (Contains 4 figures and 2 tables.)

OBJECTIVE To evaluate the dosing accuracy of 2 female enteral syringe types for use in neonates. METHODS This was an in vitro study evaluating dosing accuracy of ENFit with low dose tip (LDT) and Nutrisafe2 (NS2) syringes. Acceptable dosing variance (DV) was +/− 10%. Outcomes included tests exceeding 10% DV and DV by syringe size, dispensing source, and intended dosing volume. RESULTS A total of 300 tests were performed (LDT = 150, NS2 = 150) with 3 syringe sizes (0.5, 1, 3 or 2.5 mL). Compared with NS2, LDT had significantly more tests with unacceptable DV (48% vs 4.7%, p < 0.0001) and higher absolute DV (11.9% vs 3.5%, p < 0.001). Dosing variance was inversely proportional to syringe size, where the smallest syringes were least accurate (0.5 mL LDT 16.1% vs 4.6%, p < 0.001). The largest syringes had acceptable DV (3 mL LDT 8.8% vs 2.5 mL NS2 3.3%, p < 0.001). Bulk bottle with adapters demonstrated a higher DV with LDT compared with NS2 (13.3% vs 3.9%, p < 0.001). Medication cups without adapters were associated with acceptable DV for both LDT and NS2 (9.7% vs 2.9%, p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS The Nutrisafe2 syringe has greater dosing accuracy as compared with ENFit LDT syringe. Smaller syringes are associated with greater dosing inaccuracy, but this effect was within acceptable DV for the NS2 syringe. Bulk bottle adapters did not improve the accuracy of the LDT. More clinical evaluations are needed to determine if the ENFit can be safely used in the neonatal population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: The study examined associations between bar-sponsored drink specials and alcohol intoxication at the patron level. Method: Data were collected in a college bar district located in a large campus community in the southeastern United States. Random and self-selected samples of patrons were interviewed after exiting college bars at night on four different nights (N = 383). Anonymous interview and questionnaire data were collected as well as breath alcohol concentration (BrAC) readings. Results: Significant gender differences existed in patron drinking practices. Women were more likely to take advantage of drink specials, whereas men reported greater alcohol expenditures, consumed more drinks, and drank for longer periods of time. Gender differences in BrAC were very small and not meaningful. Patrons who did not take advantage of drink specials reported consuming more drinks before bar entry than patrons who did participate in these promotions. Participation in 'all-you-can-drink' promotions was significantly associated with higher BrAC readings after adjusting for covariates and random effects attributable to drinking establishment. Other drink specials did not have significant associations with alcohol intoxication. Conclusions: The all-you-can-drink special may be the specific discounting practice with the greatest potential for boosting patron intoxication and thus may need to be a stronger focus of alcohol-control policies aimed at improving the beverage service of drinking establishments., THERE IS LITTLE DISPUTE that the price of alcohol affects its consumption. Econometric research has established that price decreases in alcohol are accompanied by increases in rates of drinking and [...]

The serotonin transporter promoter polymorphism (5-HTTLPR) has been linked to a number of human behavioral traits and disorders. The variants of 5-HTTLPR are commonly reported in three forms, L/L, S/L and S/S, with the latter most often associated with emotional distress and/or behavioral dysfunction. Missing from the research literature are investigations that assess event-level associations between 5-HTTLPR genotype and specific incidents of risk behavior in natural drinking settings. This study reports associations between 5-HTTLPR, alcohol intoxication and intention to drive among young adult patrons exiting on-premise drinking establishments (i.e. bars) at night. Self-report measures, breath alcohol concentration (BrAC) readings and saliva samples for DNA analysis were collected from 477 bar patrons. Analyses were performed on 225 patrons likely to be near their peak intoxication level for the night. Results from a linear regression revealed that the 5-HTTLPR genotype was associated with exiting patron BrAC, after adjusting for random and fixed effects of other variables. An interaction effect involving 5-HTTLPR and bar-sponsored drink specials also had an independent association with BrAC, suggesting that selection of price-discounted alcoholic beverages increased intoxication in patrons with an L allele. In addition, results from logistic regression indicated that patrons with the S/S genotype were three times more likely to intend to drive a motor vehicle (after drinking on the night of study participation) compared with those with the L/L genotype. The 5-HTTLPR genotype may play an important role in the etiology of problems associated with on-premise drinking establishments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Many population studies find that alcohol prices are inversely related to alcohol consumption and alcohol-related problems, including among college students and young adults. Yet, little is known about the “micro-level” effects of alcohol price on the behavior of individual consumers in natural drinking settings such as college bars. Therefore, we assessed patron’s cost per gram of ethanol consumed at on-premise drinking establishments and its association with intoxication upon leaving an establishment. Methods: On 4 consecutive nights during April 2008, data were collected from 804 patrons exiting 7 on-premise establishments in a bar district located adjacent to a large university campus in the southeastern United States. Anonymous interview and survey data were collected as well as breath alcohol concentration (BrAC) readings. We calculated each patron’s expenditures per unit of ethanol consumed based on self-reported information regarding the type, size, number, and cost of consumed drinks. Results: A multivariable model revealed that a 10-cent increase in cost per gram of ethanol at on-premise establishments was associated with a 30% reduction in the risk of exiting an establishment intoxicated (i.e., BrAC ≥ 0.08 g/210 l). Conclusions: The results are consistent with economic theory and population-level research regarding the price elasticity of alcoholic beverages, which show that increases in alcohol prices are accompanied by less alcohol consumption. These findings suggest that stricter regulation of the drink discounting practices of on-premise drinking establishments would be an effective strategy for reducing the intoxication levels of exiting patrons. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: To determine whether drink specials independently in- crease patrons' risk of achieving a high level of intoxication upon exiting drinking establishments. Methods: In a campus community, data were collected from exiting patrons (N=291) via sidewalk inter- views and breath tests on 6 nights of 2 consecutive semesters. Results: A multivariate model revealed that taking advantage of a drink special was associated with a fourfold Increase in risk of achieving a BAC ⩾ 80 mg/dl. Conclusions: These findings are the first to document that the drink discounting practices of college bars can be linked to higher intoxication levels among exiting patrons. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]