Brooklyn District Branch Honors Residents for Outstanding Research

Kunal Gandhi, M.D., of Brookdale University Hospital Medical Center received first prize for his oral presentation titled “Is Cannabis a Gateway Drug? A Retrospective Analysis of American Adolescents” at the Brooklyn Psychiatric Society Resident Scholarly Presentation Competition. His colleagues on the project were fellow trainees Nishat Kulkarni, M.D., and Saral Desai, M.D.

The team analyzed 2019 data from the CDC’s Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System to identify the prevalence of lifetime cannabis use among American adolescents, the prevalence of co-occurring substance use, and the odds of co-occurring substance use among participants with any lifetime cannabis use. They found that cannabis use was correlated with increased odds of ever using certain substances such as alcohol, tobacco, hallucinogens, and stimulants but was not correlated with increased odds of ever using opiates or injection drugs.

Other oral presentations were by Galen Ballentine, M.D., of SUNY Downstate, Gabriela Arth, M.D., of Maimonides Medical Center, and Stanley Nkemjika, M.D., M.P.H., of Interfaith Medical Center.

First prize for a poster presentation was awarded to Kelvin Oke, M.D., of Interfaith Medical Center for his research on “Adolescent Crimes: Association of Multiple Substance Use With Arrests Among Adolescents.” His colleagues on the project were Christian Nwabueze, M.D., Dr.P.H., Sana Kazi, M.D., Muhammad Azam, M.D., Bamidele Johnson, M.D., Ph.D., Jacky Petion, M.D., and Ayodeji Jolayemi, M.D.

Oke and colleagues analyzed 2018 data from the Treatment Episode Data Set—Admission (TEDS-A), a national data system of annual admissions to, and discharges from, substance use treatment facilities.

They looked at the association between multiple substance use in the past 30 days and criminal arrest within that same period. Multiple substance use is defined as use of at least one illicit drug (cocaine, heroin, hallucinogens, methamphetamines, and inhalants), and alcohol or marijuana or both.

They found that use of multiple substances was associated with higher odds of arrests than the use of a single substance.

Also presenting posters were Nishat Kulkarni, M.D., of Brookdale University Hospital Medical Center; Megan Hophing, M.D., of Maimonides Medical Center; and Hagar Kandel, M.B.B.Ch., of SUNY Downstate. ■