Exploring the Comorbidity of Anxiety and Substance Use Disorders
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Sonja Pasche
The high comorbidity of anxiety disorders (ADs) and substance use disorders (SUDs) has been repeatedly demonstrated among the general population [1, 2, 3•] and patients in treatment [4, 5]. A large-scale epidemiologic survey conducted in the United States found that having a SUD increased the risk of an AD by 1.7 to 2.8 times [1]. Similarly, Dutch data demonstrated that individuals with a pure AD were 2.4 times more likely to be diagnosed with alcohol dependence than controls [6]. Data from the National Comorbidity Survey-Replication in the United States (n09,282) indicated a positive association between all ADs tested (social phobia, generalized anxiety disorder, panic disorder, agoraphobia) and alcohol abuse, alcohol dependence, drug abuse, and drug dependence [3•]. fulltext-5.pdf