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Flaws of drug instrumentalization

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  10 November 2011

Joel Swendsen  and
Michel Le Moal
Joel Swendsen
Affiliation:
Université de Bordeaux, National Center for Scientific Research (CNRS 5287), 33000 Bordeaux cedex – France. [email protected]
Michel Le Moal
Affiliation:
INSERM, U862, Neurocentre Magendie, Neurogenesis and pathophysiology, Bordeaux F-33000, France. [email protected] Université de Bordeaux, Bordeaux F-33000, France.
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Abstract

The adaptive use of drugs, or “drug instrumentalization,” is presented as a reality that the scientific literature has largely ignored. In this commentary, we demonstrate why this concept has limited value from the standpoint of nosology, why it should not be viewed as “adaptive,” and why it has dangerous implications for policy and public health efforts.

Type
Open Peer Commentary
Information
Behavioral and Brain Sciences , Volume 34 , Issue 6 , December 2011 , pp. 323 - 324
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2011

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