Unregistered User If this is not your name, click here.
		Contact Us | Order Now | Journals | Bookstore | Register a colleague
	Select a ChannelAcneAIDS and HIVAllergy OtherAlzheimer'sAnaesthesiology OtherAngina Pectoris/MIAnxietyArthritis OtherAsthmaBack PainBacterial InfectionsBladder CancerBone Marrow TransplantationBreast CancerCardiology OtherCataractCell TransplantationCervical CancerCholesterol/Lipid disordersCirrhosisClinical PharmacologyColorectal CancerCongestive Heart FailureContact DermatitisContraceptionCOPDCystic FibrosisDental and Oral DisordersDepressionDermatology OtherDiabetesDialysisEating DisordersElbowEmergency MedicineEndocrinology OtherEpilepsyErectile DysfunctionFibromyalgiaGastro OtherGeneticsGenitourinary OtherGeriatricsGERD/GastritisGlaucomaH. Pylori/UlcerHaematology OtherHair LossHeadachesHepa/Biliary OtherHepatitisHipHRTHypertensionIBDImmunologyInfectious OtherInfertilityIntensive CareIrritable Bowel SyndromeKneeLeukemiasLiver CancerLung CancerLupusLymphomasMelanomaMenopauseMultiple Sclerosis Nephrology OtherNeurologic OtherNutritional / Metabolic OtherOb/Gyn OtherObesityOncology OtherOphth. OtherOphthalmic SurgeryOrgan TransplantationOrthopaedics OtherOsteoarthritisOsteoporosisOtitisOtorhino. OtherOvarian CancerPaediatricsPainPancreatic CancerParkinson'sPregnancyProstate CancerPsychiatry OtherPulmonary OtherRadiologyRenal CancerRenal FailureRespiratory InfectionsRheumatoid arthritisRheumatology OtherRhinitisSchizophreniaShoulderSleep ApnoeaSleep DisordersSpineStrokeSTDsSurgeryThyroid DisordersTransfusionTransplant Surgery OtherTraumaUrinary IncontinenceUrinary tract infectionsVaccinologyVascular DisordersViral Infections

SEARCH   News Bookstore Medline The Web Meetings & Congresses Complete Doctor's Guide    EXPLORE :    All News   All Webcasts   All Cases   All Meetings & Congresses   All Medical Resources New drugs / indications English Dictionary Medical Dictionary Thesaurus Warning | Privacy | Awards  Favourite Journals  Click here to choose your favourite journals  Favourite Sites  Click here to choose your favourite sites  Languages  Select languageEnglishFrançais

Trauma -- A Potential Sign Of Dependence Or Addiction CHICAGO -- June 10, 1997 -- More than half of seriously injured people seeking treatment at trauma centers are currently or have previously been diagnosed with a psychoactive substance use disorder (PSUD), according to an article in this week's issue of The Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA). Carl A. Soderstrom, M.D., from the R. Adams Cowley Shock Trauma Center, University of Maryland Medical Center, Baltimore, and colleagues assessed the prevalence PSUDs among 1,118 seriously injured trauma center patients. Psychoactive substances include alcohol and drugs. "This study documents that 54.2 percent of the trauma center patients had a lifetime PSUD, 87.5 percent of which were for dependence,” the researchers write. “One in four patients (24.1 percent) was currently alcohol dependent at the time of the injury." The researchers also report that 17.7 percent were currently dependent on other drugs. "The dependence-to-abuse ratios of alcohol and drug diagnoses were approximately nine to one,” they write. “In contrast, the dependence-to-abuse ratios for alcohol and other drugs in the general population are 2.8-to-1 and 3.5-to-1, respectively. Our data suggest that seriously injured trauma center patients manifest more severe forms of addiction than the general population with PSUDs." Among intentional injury victims, the researchers found a 36 percent rate of current drug dependence and a 30 percent rate of alcoholism. According to the authors, this highlights the association between drug use and violence, especially in urban environments. This is the first study to evaluate the prevalence of PSUDs in a large unselected cohort of seriously injured trauma center patients using a standardized diagnostic interview instrument and standardized criteria. Because of the high rates of alcohol and other drug dependence among trauma center patients and high readmission rates for those patients, the authors recommend clinicians regard trauma as a possible symptom of alcoholism and other drug addictions. Alcohol and other drug addiction screening, intervention, and referral should be implemented by trauma centers. The researchers recommend the following steps be added to trauma center procedure: --Consider all trauma center patients at high risk for a substance use disorder. --Test for alcohol and other drugs of abuse. --Administer an alcohol and drug screening questionnaire as a supplement to BAC (blood alcohol concentration) and urine testing. --Refer patients who are blood alcohol-positive, drug-positive, or both or those who screen positive for formal evaluation and treatment of PSUDs. "Trauma and addiction clinicians need to become partners in seizing the opportunity to institute treatment for alcohol and drug addiction," they authors conclude. E-mail this page to a friend or colleague! To print, use this version