NIDA Director Dr. Nora Volkow to Speak about Addiction at World Psychiatric Association Conference in Shanghai, China

NIDA Director Dr. Nora Volkow to Speak about Addiction at World Psychiatric Association Conference in Shanghai, China

September 15, 2007

    BETHESDA, Md., Sept. 15 /Xinhua-PRNewswire/ -- 

    Dr. Nora Volkow, Director of the National Institute on
Drug Abuse (NIDA), part of the National Institutes of
Health (NIH) in Bethesda, Maryland, USA, will speak at the
2007 World Psychiatric (WPA) Regional Meeting & Chinese
Society of Psychiatry (CSP) Annual Congress in Shanghai in
September.  The meeting will provide a special opportunity
to discuss some of the most important topics of the
psychiatric field within an international framework. Such
topics will cover forensic psychiatry, clinical diagnosis,
approaches to care, and cultural issues. 

    WHO:    Dr. Nora D. Volkow
            Director, National Institute on Drug Abuse

    WHAT:   Scientific Presentation on Drug Addiction in
Shanghai entitled 
            "The Neurobiology of Free Will in
Addictive Disorders" 

    WHEN:   Friday, September 21, 2007
            9:30-11:30 a.m. 

    WHERE:  Shanghai International Convention Center, Grand
Ballroom 
            Shanghai, China

    BACKGROUND: Nora D. Volkow, M.D., became the director
of NIDA at the 
                National Institutes of Health in May 2003.
NIDA supports most 
                of the world's research on the health
aspects of drug abuse 
                and addiction.  Dr. Volkow's work has been
instrumental in 
                demonstrating that drug addiction is a
disease of the human 
                brain. As a research psychiatrist and
scientist, Dr. Volkow 
                pioneered the use of brain imaging to
investigate the toxic 
                effects of drugs and their addictive
properties. Her studies 
                have documented changes in the dopamine
system affecting the 
                actions of frontal brain regions involved
with motivation, 
                drive, and pleasure and the decline of
brain dopamine  
                function with age. She has also made
important contributions 
                to the neurobiology of obesity, ADHD, and
the behavioral 
                changes that occur with aging.  

                The WPA is an association of psychiatric
societies aimed to 
                increase knowledge and skills necessary for
work in the field 
                of mental health and the care for the
mentally ill. Its member 
                societies are presently 130, spanning 113
different countries 
                and representing more than 180,000
psychiatrists. The WPA 
                organizes international and regional
congresses and meetings, 
                and thematic conferences. It has 65
scientific sections,  
                aimed to disseminate information and
promote collaborative 
                work in specific domains of psychiatry.
Further information  
                on the WPA can be found on the website
http://www.wpanet.org.

    CONTACT:    To schedule an interview with Dr. Nora
Volkow, please call 
                Sharan Jayne in the NIDA offices at
301-594-6141                  
                or 202-365-5646.  

    The National Institute on Drug Abuse is a component of
the National Institutes of Health, U.S. Department of
Health and Human Services. NIDA supports most of the
world's research on the health aspects of drug abuse and
addiction. The Institute carries out a large variety of
programs to inform policy and improve practice.  Fact
sheets on the health effects of drugs of abuse and
information on NIDA research and other activities can be
found on the NIDA home page at http://www.drugabuse.gov.

    The National Institutes of Health (NIH) -- The Nation's
Medical Research Agency -- includes 27 Institutes and
Centers and is a component of the U.S. Department of Health
and Human Services. It is the primary Federal agency for
conducting and supporting basic, clinical and translational
medical research, and it investigates the causes,
treatments, and cures for both common and rare diseases.
For more information about NIH and its programs, visit
http://www.nih.gov.


    For more information, please contact:

     Dorie Hightower or Sara Rosario Wilson
     NIDA
     Phone:    [phone], or en Espanol,
[phone]/ 
     Website:  http://www.nih.gov
               http://www.wpanet.org
               http://www.drugabuse.gov