Substance Use Disorders in Patients With Anxiety Disorders

Patients who seek treatment for anxiety disorders often have problems with alcohol or drug abuse and are otherwise at an increased risk for developing such problems. Therefore, it benefits mental health practitioners to be aware of the following:

• The specific prevalence of substance use disorders among those with anxiety disorders

• How to reliably identify comorbid drug and alcohol use disorders in patients with anxiety disorders

• The signs of elevated risk of substance use problems developing in patients with anxiety disorders

• How to respond clinically when comorbid drug or alcohol problems exist or when there is a high risk of such problems to develop

In this article, we attempt to leverage state-of-the-art research findings to provide empirically informed perspectives and practices related to these issues. Toward this end, we draw heavily on our own research (funded by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism [NIAAA] and National Institute on Drug Abuse) and our clinical experience, as well as on the National Epidemiologic Survey on Alcohol and Related Conditions (NESARC).¹

Risk of comorbidity

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