Letter from the Director
What is Comorbidity?When two disorders or illnesses occur in the same
person, simultaneously or sequentially, they
are called comorbid. Comorbidity also implies
interactions between the illnesses that affect the course and
prognosis of both. Read More...
Comorbidity is a topic that our stakeholders–patients, family members, health
care professionals, and others– frequently
ask about. It is also a topic about which
we have insufficient information, and so it
remains a research priority for NIDA. This
Research Report provides information on
the state of the science in this area. And
although a variety of diseases commonly
co-occur with drug abuse and addiction
(e.g. HIV, hepatitis C, cancer, cardiovascular
disease), this report focuses only on the
comorbidity of drug use disorders and other
mental illnesses.*
To help explain this comorbidity, we need
to first recognize that drug addiction is a
mental illness. It is a complex brain disease
characterized by compulsive, at times
uncontrollable drug craving, seeking, and
use despite devastating consequences– behaviors that stem from drug-induced
changes in brain structure and function.
These changes occur in some of the same
brain areas that are disrupted in various
other mental disorders, such as depression,
anxiety, or schizophrenia. It is therefore not
surprising that population surveys show a
high rate of co-occurrence, or comorbidity,
between drug addiction and other mental
illnesses. Even though we cannot always
prove a connection or causality, we do
know that certain mental disorders are
established risk factors for subsequent
drug abuse– and vice versa.
It is often difficult to disentangle the overlapping
symptoms of drug addiction and
other mental illnesses, making diagnosis
and treatment complex. Correct diagnosis
is critical to ensuring appropriate and
effective treatment. Ignorance of or failure
to treat a comorbid disorder can jeopardize
a patient's chance of success. We hope
that our enhanced understanding of the
common genetic, environmental, and
neural bases of these disorders– and the
dissemination of this information– will lead
to improved treatments for comorbidity and
will diminish the social stigma that makes
patients reluctant to seek the treatment
they need.
Nora D. Volkow, M.D.
Director
National Institute on Drug Abuse
This report is also available in PDF format, Comorbidity, [PDF format, 1.1 MB]
All materials appearing in the Research Reports Series are in the public domain and may be reproduced without permission from NIDA. Citation of the source is appreciated.
This page has been accessed
10460
times since 1/6/09.
To learn more about drug use disorders and other mental illnesses, or to order materials on these topics free of charge in English or Spanish, visit the NIDA Web site at www.drugabuse.gov or contact the
DrugPubs Research Dissemination Center at
877-NIDA-NIH (877-643-2644;
TTY/TDD: 240-645-0228).
|