A new study published in Substance Use & Addiction Journal found that state-level AUD estimates among women ranged from approximately 6-13 percent, with all New England states and several in the West and Midwest exceeding the national average of 8 percent among women. More than 40 percent of addiction treatment facilities did not offer women-specific treatment, and services targeted toward women—especially childcare—were disproportionately unavailable in many states that had higher-than-average estimated AUD prevalence among women. The study was funded by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism and is the first to explore state-level differences in AUD among women and the availability of women-specific services in treatment facilities.

A proof-of-concept study led by UC’s Agnes (Yu) Luo, PhD, and collaborators at UC Davis shows that an adeno-associated virus (AAV) gene therapy can reduce hydrocephalus-associated tissue damage in animal models, pointing to a potential new treatment strategy.