Cited by 941Substance Abuse Treatment and OutcomesMental Health Treatment and AccessBipolar Disorder and Treatment

Prevalence of comorbid substance use, anxiety and mood disorders in epidemiological surveys, 1990–2014: A systematic review and meta-analysis

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Lai, Harry Man Xiong, Cleary, Michelle, Sitharthan, Thiagarajan, Hunt, Glenn E.·2015·Drug and Alcohol Dependence

Abstract

Background Comorbidity is highly prevalent between substance use disorders (SUDs), mood and anxiety disorders. We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis to determine the strength of association between SUDs, mood and anxiety disorders in population-based epidemiological surveys.Methods A comprehensive literature search of Medline, EMBASE, CINAHL, PsychINFO, Web of Science, and Scopus was conducted from 1990 to 2014. Sources were chosen on the basis that they contained original research in non-clinical populations conducted in randomly selected adults living within defined boundaries. Prevalence of comorbid SUDs, mood and anxiety disorders and odds ratios (ORs) were extracted.Results There were 115 articles identified by electronic searches that were reviewed in full text which yielded 22 unique epidemiological surveys to extract lifetime and 12-month prevalence data for psychiatric illness in respondents with an SUD. Meta-analysis indicated the strongest associations were between illicit drug use disorder and major depression (pooled OR 3.80, 95% CI 3.02-4.78), followed by illicit drug use and any anxiety disorder (OR 2.91, 95% CI 2.58-3.28), alcohol use disorders and major depression (OR 2.42, 95% CI 2.22-2.64) and alcohol use disorders and any anxiety disorder (OR 2.11, 95% CI 2.03-2.19). ORs for dependence were higher than those for abuse irrespective to diagnoses based on lifetime or 12-month prevalence.Conclusions This review confirms the strong association between SUDs, mood and anxiety disorders. The issue has now been recognised worldwide as a factor that affects the profile, course, patterns, severity and outcomes of these disorders.

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Crossref · 10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2015.05.031

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Authors
Lai, H. M. X., Cleary, M., Sitharthan, T., & Hunt, G. E.
Affiliations
  • The University of Sydney (AU)
  • Western Sydney University (AU)
Corresponding author
Hunt, Glenn E.
Venue
Drug and Alcohol Dependence
Publisher
Elsevier BV
Published
2015-09
Volume
154
Pages
1-13
ISSN
0376-8716 (ISSN-L)
OpenAlex
W1494270537
Cited by
941
References
113
Citations by year
2026: 86 · 2025: 96 · 2024: 101 · 2023: 92 · 2022: 91 · 2021: 102 · 2020: 150 · 2019: 85 · 2018: 60 · 2017: 43 · 2016: 26 · 2015: 7 · 2014: 1
FWCI
5.89
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • Drug and Alcohol Dependence (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • eCite Digital Repository (University of Tasmania) (submittedVersion)
  • Figshare (submittedVersion, cc-by)
Topics
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Epidemiology › Substance Abuse Treatment and Outcomes
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Mental Health Treatment and Access
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Psychiatry and Mental health › Bipolar Disorder and Treatment
Keywords
substance use disorders, psychiatric comorbidity, mood disorders, anxiety disorders, major depressive disorder, illicit drug use, alcoholism, substance dependence, substance abuse, prevalence, lifetime prevalence, 12-month prevalence
MeSH terms
Adult, Anxiety Disorders, Depressive Disorder, Major, Major Depressive Disorder, Humans, Comorbidity, Prevalence, Odds Ratio, Substance-Related Disorders, Alcohol-Related Disorders

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