Substance use disorders among adolescents in Taiwan: prevalence, sociodemographic correlates and psychiatric co-morbidity

Background. This paper reports prevalences, sociodemographic correlates and psychiatric comorbidity of substance use disorders (SUDs) among adolescent s in Taiwan. Methods. A random sample of ninth grade students (N = 774) was selected fro m an urban, a suburban and a rural community. Two-stage case identification was employed with a brief screening tool and a modified Chinese version of the Kiddie-SADS conducted by child psychiatrists. Results. The overall prevalence of any SUD was 11.0%, with nicotine (96.0%) as the most prevalent substance. The prevalences of SUDs were significantl y higher in boys, rural community and classes with poor academic performanc e. Sixty-two per cent of all SUD cases suffered from other concurrent psych iatric disorders. The most common co-morbid conditions were conduct disorde r, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and mood disorders. Conclusions. High prevalences of SUDs were found among adolescent school ch ildren in Taiwan. Effects of urbanization, selective migration and the avai lability of substances are possible explanations for the urban-rural differ ence on the risk for SUDs. Psychiatric co-morbid conditions for SUD among a dolescents in Taiwan were similar to those in Western societies.