1.4 Adolescent Concurrent Disorders

Youth & Drugs and Mental Health: A Resource For Professionals

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• 1.4 Adolescent concurrent disorders
• 1.4.1 Ontario data on coexisting substance use and mental health problems among students

1.4 Adolescent concurrent disorders

Young people who develop substance use problems are often dealing with many other issues, including mental health problems. This is evident among those who present for drug treatment. The combination of substance use problems and mental health concerns is referred to as “concurrent disorders” (CAMH, 2002a).

According to the OSDUS report (Adlaf et al., 2002), survey research in Canada and the United States has found links between substance use and mental health problems among young people:

• A Canadian survey of adolescents aged 12 to 16 found a strong association between an existing mental disorder (e.g., conduct disorder) and substance use, especially among females.
• A United States household survey found that adolescents aged 12 to 17 with severe emotional or behavioural problems were much more likely to be dependent on alcohol or illicit drugs compared to young people without those problems.
• The United States National Comorbidity Survey found that half of all those aged 15 to 54 who have had a mental disorder during their lifetime have also had a history of substance use problems. Moreover, the 15- to 24-year-old group was most likely to have had a concurrent disorder.

According to Health Canada’s Best Practices: Concurrent Mental Health and Substance Use Disorders (2002), the term concurrent disorders is applied to those people who experience a combination of mental, emotional and psychiatric problems with the use of alcohol and/or other psychoactive drugs. The technical and diagnostic definition refers to any combination of mental health and substance use disorders, as defined for example on either Axis I or Axis II of the DSM-IV.

1.4.1 Ontario d ata on coexisting substance use and mental health problems among students

The OSDUS provides some information about the extent of overlap between substance use and mental health problems among Ontario students.

OSDUS findings
About one in 25 (36,600 of Ontario students) report both elevated psychological distress (symptoms of anxiety and depression) and hazardous drinking. Young women and young men are equally likely to report a concurrent problem (Adlaf et al., 2002).

Among students reporting alcohol problems, almost half also report psychological distress (Adlaf & Paglia, 2001).

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