ALCOHOL-USE AND ABUSE IN A UNIVERSITY PSYCHIATRIC HEALTH-SERVICE - PREVALENCE AND PATTERNS OF COMORBIDITY WITH OTHER PSYCHIATRIC-PROBLEMS

This study examined the extent of use and abuse of alcohol and other d rugs in a university psychiatric health service and patterns of commor bidity with other psychiatric problems. Results were compared with dat a on substance use patterns of Ontario undergraduate students to deter mine if the psychiatric sample was at high risk for substance abuse. A sample of 110 students registering for treatment in a one-year period at the University of Toronto psychiatric health service was surveyed. Psychiatric service students tended to drink less than the undergradu ate comparison group and to report similar frequencies of adverse cons equences. Twenty-six percent met lifetime DSM-III criteria for alcohol abuse or alcohol dependence and 13% reported symptoms during the prev ious year. The disorders were generally mild. Alcohol disorders were s ignificantly associated with mania, panic, generalized anxiety and psy chosexual dysfunction. Students with both alcohol and another psychiat ric disorder reported that the psychiatric disorder usually preceded t he onset of alcohol abuse.