Alcohol dependence, anxiety and mood disorders

In the general population depression may pre-date alcohol disorders in wome n but seldom in men. Support for the self-medication hypothesis is inconsis tent; support grows for a common genetic basis for these disorders in some individuals. There may also be a genetic basis for the association between alcohol dependence and attention - deficit hyperactivity disorder and serot onin is implicated. Medications and cognitive therapy can be effective. Cur l Opin Psychiatry 12:297-301. (C) 1999 Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.