TY  - JOUR
PY  - 2018//
TI  - Self-medication with alcohol or drugs for mood and anxiety disorders: a narrative review of the epidemiological literature
JO  - Depression and anxiety
A1  - Turner, Sarah
A1  - Mota, Natalie
A1  - Bolton, James
A1  - Sareen, Jitender
SP  - 851
EP  - 860
VL  - 35
IS  - 9
N2  - BACKGROUND: The comorbidity of mood and anxiety disorders (MD and AD) with substance use disorders (SUD) is common. One explanation for this comorbidity is the self-medication hypothesis, which posits that individuals with MD or AD use substances to cope with the difficult symptoms associated with the disorder. Over time, self-medication (SM) can develop into an independent SUD. This narrative review will present the prevalence and correlates of SM with alcohol and/or drugs for MD and AD and the relationship between SM and subsequent SUD using both cross-sectional and longitudinal epidemiological data. <br><br>METHODS: Scopus and PsycINFO were searched from January 1997 to April 2018 to identify original research articles that examined the prevalence and correlates of SM and the temporal relationship between MD/AD and SUD in the general population (n = 22). <br><br>RESULTS: The prevalence of SM with alcohol and/or drugs among those with MD or AD ranged from 21.9% to 24.1%. Male sex, younger age, being separated, divorced or widowed, and being Caucasian were characteristics associated with higher proportions of respondents endorsing SM with alcohol/drugs for MD and AD. Longitudinal data supports the temporal onset of primary MD/AD and secondary SUD among those who self-report SM. <br><br>CONCLUSION: Providing and promoting alternate coping strategies for those with MD/AD may reduce SM, the development of SUD, and the comorbidity of MD/AD with SUD. The concurrent treatment of MD/AD and substance use is the current "gold standard" model of care, and the results of this review support its use.<br><br>© 2018, The Authors. Depression and Anxiety published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc.<p />  <p>Language: en</p>
LA  - en
SN  - 1091-4269
UR  - http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/da.22771
ID  - ref1
ER  -