Cocaine dependence with and without comorbid depression: a comparison of patient characteristics

This study compared depressed cocaine dependent patients (CD, N = 50) with patients who were cocaine dependent only (CO, N = 101) on pre-treatment psy chiatric symptomatology, substance use, and psychosocial functioning. Resul ts indicated that the CD group had more overall distress and poorer psychia tric functioning than the CO group. CD individuals scored higher on all sub scales of the SCL-90-R, had a higher prevalence of antisocial personality d isorder, reported higher craving for cocaine, lower self-efficacy to refrai n from drug use, and lower perceived social support. These findings support the need for more intensive treatment approaches for dually-diagnosed pati ents. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.