Psychosocial findings in alcohol-dependent patients before and after three months of total alcohol abstinence

Abstract

Alcohol use disorders (AUDs) may be associated with several psychological and affective disorders. It is controversial, however, if these symptoms are a cause or rather a consequence of alcohol dependence. There are few data testing simultaneously psychosocial and affective disorders before and after a period of alcohol abstinence. The aim of this study was to perform multiple psychometric evaluations in alcohol-dependent patients before and after 12 weeks of abstinence. Twenty-five alcohol-dependent patients were included in the study. The following psychometric tests were administered at baseline (T0) and after 12 weeks (T1): addiction severity index (ASI), brief psychiatric rating scale (BPRS), social behavior scale (SBS), Sheehan disability scale (DISS), aggression questionnaire (AQ). At T1, 16 (64%) patients were abstinent, 5 (20%) patients dropped out and 4 (16%) patients relapsed. Compared to T0, patients totally abstinent at T1 showed a significant reduction of the scores related to BPRS, BPRS-E and its subscales (except BPRS 5), ASI 1, ASI 2, ASI 3, ASI 6, ASI 7, BSM, AQ, DISS 1, DISS 2, DISS 3 (p < 0.05). No significant changes in ASI 4, ASI 5, DISS 4, and DISS 5, BPRS 5 scores were found at T1 compared to T0. The present study indicates that total alcohol abstinence improves psychometric features, such as alcohol addiction severity, psychiatric rating, social behavior, aggressiveness, and disability. Larger controlled studies are needed to confirm these findings.

Relationship Between Alexithymia and Aggression in a Sample of Men with Substance Dependence

“…It was suggested that patients with SUD experience anger more often than others, are more likely to express anger towards other persons or objects in the environment, and have less control over their angry feelings 66 , particularly in terms of intoxicated (chemical) aggression [67][68][69] . Thus, while substance use alleviates chronic anxiety temporarily 70 , it can trigger verbal or physical aggression chemically 71 . Consistent with this finding, total abstinence from substance improves aggressiveness 72 , and the treatment of substance dependency may be an important target for prevention of aggressive behaviors 29 .…”

Development of the Global Disability Scale (Glo.Di.S): preliminary results

“…The above instruments have already been used in the study of disability across a number of sociodemographic variables and different diseases and disorders, including acne vulgaris with social phobia [ 36 ], bipolar disorder [ 37 - 39 ], undifferentiated peripheral inflammatory arthritis [ 40 ], adult-onset hearing loss [ 41 ], psychotic disorders [ 42 - 47 ], multiple sclerosis [ 47 ], depression and anxiety [ 7 , 46 , 48 - 60 ], injury [ 61 - 63 ], alcohol abuse [ 64 ], sex differences [ 53 , 65 - 67 ], arthritis [ 60 ], chronic spinal pain [ 60 ], high blood pressure [ 60 ], social anxiety [ 68 ], obsessive-compulsive disorder [ 69 ], on-pump coronary artery bypass [ 70 ], dementia [ 71 ], cancer with pain [ 72 , 73 ], obesity and type 2 diabetes mellitus [ 74 ], mental-physical disorders comorbidity [ 75 , 76 ], leprosy [ 77 ], ADHD [ 78 , 79 ], anxiety in children [ 80 ], Parkinson’s disease [ 81 ], macular degeneration [ 48 ], inflammatory arthritis [ 23 ], migraine [ 8 ] and systemic sclerosis [ 82 , 83 ].…”