HEAVY DRINKING, ALCOHOL-DEPENDENT VS NONDEPENDENT METHADONE-MAINTENANCE CLIENTS - A FOLLOW-UP-STUDY

This study of methadone-maintenance clients interviewed approximately 1 year after discharge from treatment revealed that outcomes differed between heavy-drinking clients who are alcohol dependent and those who are not. Alcohol-dependent clients seem to benefit more from treatmen t but continue to have severe cocaine-use problems, suggesting they al so may be cocaine dependent. The results emphasized the value in diffe rentiating between these types of drinking clients, and they suggest t hat failure to do so may account for earlier contradictory results abo ut the role alcohol consumption has in treatment outcomes for methadon e-maintenance clients. Copyright (C) 1996 Elsevier Science Ltd