Comorbid anxiety and affective disorder in alcohol-dependent patients seeking treatment: The first Multicentre Study in Germany

The goals of this study were to describe demographic variables, drinking hi story, and the B-month prevalence of Axis I comorbidity among alcohol-depen dent subjects in Germany. The variables: amount of alcohol consumption, age at onset of the first alcohol consumed, age at onset of daily alcohol cons umption, age at onset of withdrawal symptoms and number of detoxifications were related to the different comorbid disorders and gender. In this study, 556 patients from 25 alcohol treatment centres were enrolled between 1 Jan uary 1999 and 30 April 1999. After a minimum of 10 days of sobriety patient s who fulfilled ICD-10 and DSM-IV criteria of alcohol dependence were inter viewed for data collection using the Mini-DIPS (German version of the Anxie ty Disorders Interview Schedule) and a standardized psychosocial interview. The 6-month prevalence of comorbid Axis I disorders was 53.1%. Among the p atients with comorbidity, affective and anxiety disorders were most frequen t. Comorbid stress disorder was associated with an early start of drinking, an early beginning of withdrawal symptoms, highest number of detoxificatio ns, and the highest amount of alcohol consumed. Female patients with anxiet y disorder consumed more alcohol and started earlier than females without t his comorbid disorder. The data do not answer the question of the pathogene sis of comorbid disorders and alcoholism, but indicate that stress disorder s in alcoholic patients and anxiety disorders in female alcoholics influenc e the course and severity of alcoholism.