VTechWorks staff will be away for the Thanksgiving holiday beginning at noon on Wednesday, November 27, through Friday, November 29. We will resume normal operations on Monday, December 2. Thank you for your patience.

Browsing by Author "Liskiewicz, Amylynn"

Now showing 1 - 3 of 3
  • Thumbnail Image
    Dosing parameters for the effects of high-frequency transcranial magnetic stimulation on smoking cessation: Study protocol for a randomized factorial sham-controlled clinical trial
    Carl, Ellen; Liskiewicz, Amylynn; Rivard, Cheryl; Alberico, Ronald; Belal, Ahmed; Mahoney, Martin C.; Quisenberry, Amanda J.; Bickel, Warren K.; Sheffer, Christine E. (Springer, 2020-05-01)
    Background: Despite the considerable success of comprehensive tobacco control efforts, tobacco use remains one of the greatest preventable causes of death and disease today. Over half of all smokers in the US make quit attempts every year, but over 90% relapse within 12 months, choosing the immediate reinforcement of smoking over the long-term benefits of quitting. Conceptual and empirical evidence supports continued investigation of high frequency repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) of the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex in reducing relapse and decreasing cigarette consumption. While this evidence is compelling, an optimal dosing strategy must be determined before a long-term efficacy trial can be conducted. The goal of this study is to determine a dosing strategy for 20 Hz rTMS that will produce the best long-term abstinence outcomes with the fewest undesirable effects. Methods: This is a fully crossed, double-blinded, sham-controlled, 3x2x2 randomized factorial study. The three factors are duration (stimulation days: 8, 12, and 16); intensity (900 or 1800 pulses per day); and sham control. Participants (n = 258) will consist of adults (18-65) who are motivated to quit smoking cigarettes and who will be followed for 6 months post-quit. Outcomes include latency to relapse, point prevalence abstinence rates, delay discounting rates, cognitive-behavioral skills acquisition, and multiple measures of potential undesirable effects that impact participant compliance. Discussion: This study integrates existing theoretical concepts and methodologies from neuropsychology, behavioral economics, brain stimulation, clinical psychology, and the evidence-based treatment of tobacco dependence in the development of a promising and innovative approach to treat tobacco dependence. This study will establish an optimal dosing regimen for efficacy testing. Findings are expected to have a significant influence on advancing this approach as well as informing future research on clinical approaches that combine rTMS with other evidence-based treatments for tobacco dependence and perhaps other addictions.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Internal Validity of Two Promising Methods of Altering Temporal Orientation among Cigarette Smokers
    O'Connor, Richard J.; Carl, Ellen; Shevorykin, Alina; Stein, Jeffrey S.; Vantucci, Darian; Liskiewicz, Amylynn; Bensch, Lindsey; Thorner, Hannah; Marion, Matthew; Hyland, Andrew; Sheffer, Christine E. (MDPI, 2021-11-29)
    Relapse to smoking continues to be among the most urgent global health concerns. Novel, accessible, and minimally invasive treatments to aid in smoking cessation are likely to improve the reach and efficacy of smoking cessation treatment. Encouraging prospection by decreasing delay discounting (DD) is a new therapeutic target in the treatment of smoking cessation. Two early-stage interventions, delivered remotely and intended to increase prospection, decrease DD and promote cessation are Episodic Future Thinking (EFT) and Future Thinking Priming (FTP). EFT and FTP have demonstrated at least modest reductions in delay discounting, but understanding whether these interventions are internally valid (i.e., are accomplishing the stated intention) is key. This study examined the internal validity of EFT and FTP. Participants (n = 20) seeking to quit smoking were randomly assigned to active or control conditions of EFT and FTP. Linguistic Inquiry Word Count (LIWC2015) was used to examine the language participants used while engaged in the tasks. Results revealed significant differences in the language participants used in the active and control conditions. Women employed more words than men, but no other demographic differences were found in language. The active conditions for both tasks showed a greater emphasis on future orientation. Risk-avoidance was significantly higher in the active vs. control condition for EFT. Remote delivery of both EFT and FTP was valid and feasible as participants adhered to instructions in the remote prompts, and trends in DD were in the expected directions.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation for Long-Term Smoking Cessation: Preliminary Examination of Delay Discounting as a Therapeutic Target and the Effects of Intensity and Duration
    Shevorykin, Alina; Carl, Ellen; Mahoney, Martin C.; Hanlon, Colleen A.; Liskiewicz, Amylynn; Rivard, Cheryl; Alberico, Ronald; Belal, Ahmed; Bensch, Lindsey; Vantucci, Darian; Thorner, Hannah; Marion, Matthew; Bickel, Warren K.; Sheffer, Christine E. (Frontiers, 2022-07-05)
    Background: Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) is a novel treatment for smoking cessation and delay discounting rate is novel therapeutic target. Research to determine optimal therapeutic targets and dosing parameters for long-term smoking cessation is needed. Due to potential biases and confounds introduced by the COVID-19 pandemic, we report preliminary results from an ongoing study among participants who reached study end prior to the pandemic. Methods: In a 3 × 2 randomized factorial design, participants (n = 23) received 900 pulses of 20 Hz rTMS to the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (PFC) in one of three Durations (8, 12, or 16 days of stimulation) and two Intensities (1 or 2 sessions per day). We examined direction and magnitude of the effect sizes on latency to relapse, 6-month point-prevalence abstinence rates, research burden, and delay discounting rates. Results: A large effect size was found for Duration and a medium for Intensity for latency to relapse. Increasing Duration increased the odds of abstinence 7–8-fold while increasing Intensity doubled the odds of abstinence. A large effect size was found for Duration, a small for Intensity for delay discounting rate. Increasing Duration and Intensity had a small effect on participant burden. Conclusion: Findings provide preliminary support for delay discounting as a therapeutic target and for increasing Duration and Intensity to achieve larger effect sizes for long-term smoking cessation and will provide a pre-pandemic comparison for data collected during the pandemic. Clinical Trial Registration: [www.ClinicalTrials.gov], identifier [NCT03865472].