Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder and Global Severity Profiles in Treatment-Seeking Patients with Substance Use Disorders

Icick, Romain; Moggi, Franz; Slobodin, Ortal; Dom, Geert; Mathys, Frieda; van den Brink, Wim; Levin, Frances R.; Blankers, Matthijs; Kaye, Sharlene; Demetrovics, Zsolt; van de Glind, Geurt; Velez-Pastrana, Maria C.; Schellekens, Arnt S.A. (2020). Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder and Global Severity Profiles in Treatment-Seeking Patients with Substance Use Disorders. European addiction research, 26(4-5), pp. 201-210. Karger 10.1159/000508546

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Introduction: Comorbid attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is present in 15-25% of all patients seeking treatment for substance use disorders (SUDs). Some studies suggest that comorbid ADHD increases clinical severity related to SUDs, other psychiatric comorbidities, and social impairment, but could not disentangle their respective influences.

Objectives: To investigate whether comorbid adult ADHD in treatment-seeking SUD patients is associated with more severe clinical profiles in these domains assessed altogether.

Methods: Treatment-seeking SUD patients from 8 countries (N = 1,294: 26% females, mean age 40 years [SD = 11 years]) were assessed for their history of DSM-IV ADHD, SUDs, and other psychiatric conditions and sociodemographic data. SUD patients with and without comorbid ADHD were compared on indicators of severity across 3 domains: addiction (number of SUD criteria and diagnoses), psychopathological complexity (mood disorders, borderline personality disorder, lifetime suicidal thoughts, or behavior), and social status (education level, occupational and marital status, and living arrangements). Regression models were built to account for confounders for each severity indicator.

Results: Adult ADHD was present in 19% of the SUD patients. It was significantly associated with higher SUD severity, more frequent comorbid mood or borderline personality disorder, and less frequent "married" or "divorced" status, as compared with the absence of comorbid ADHD. ADHD comorbidity was independently associated with a higher number of dependence diagnoses (OR = 1.97) and more psychopathology (OR = 1.5), but not marital status.

Conclusions: In treatment-seeking SUD patients, comorbid ADHD is associated with polysubstance dependence, psychopathological complexity, and social risks, which substantiates the clinical relevance of screening, diagnosing, and treating ADHD in patients with SUDs.

Item Type:

Journal Article (Original Article)

Division/Institute:

04 Faculty of Medicine > University Psychiatric Services > University Hospital of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy > Translational Research Center
07 Faculty of Human Sciences > Institute of Psychology > Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy

UniBE Contributor:

Moggi, Franz (A)

Subjects:

600 Technology > 610 Medicine & health

ISSN:

1022-6877

Publisher:

Karger

Language:

English

Submitter:

Franz Moggi

Date Deposited:

01 Oct 2020 11:52

Last Modified:

29 Mar 2023 23:37

Publisher DOI:

10.1159/000508546

PubMed ID:

32570249

Uncontrolled Keywords:

Addiction; Attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder; Comorbidity; Dual diagnosis; Severity; Substance use disorders

BORIS DOI:

10.7892/boris.146766

URI:

https://boris.unibe.ch/id/eprint/146766

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