Prevalence of alcohol consumption in psychiatric consultations and drug addiction consultations by application the cage questionnaire camouflaged

Abstract

Introduction

Alcohol consumption associated with other psychiatric disorders in outpatient psychiatric comorbidity is a common, yet often underdiagnosed and undertreated, resulting in a worse prognosis of both diseases.

Objective

To evaluate the prevalence of alcohol consumption in psychiatric outpatient consultations and compared to drug addiction consultations.

Methods

A total of 25 outpatient psychiatrists of Extremadura and 10 doctors of substance abuse centers of Extremadura (CEDEX) participated in the study. They were included in the study a total of 373 patients, 244 who were in treatment at mental health center and 129 as a center of drugs.

Results

The mean age of patients in psychiatric consultations was 50.05 years and 42.60 years of CEDEX. The percentage of women was 54% of cases in psychiatric consultations and 18.6% in the CEDEX. Diagnoses included in psychiatric consultations were: anxiety disorders (17.2%), depressive disorders (46.3%); personality disorders (7.8%); mild mental retardation (2.5%); psychotic disorders (12.3%); dementia (2.5%); bipolar disorder (6.1%); and ADHD (1.2%). In the consultations of drugs they were: 45.4% alcohol dependent; 15.7% to cannabis; 13.3% cocaine; 10.9% heroin; 8.1% more heroin to cocaine; and 6.6% to other addictions. A total of 18.9% of patients in psychiatric consultations had a score of 2 or more in the CAGE and 62.8% of the CEDEX.

Conclusions

We found nearly a fifth of the patients attending psychiatric outpatient clinics which have a hazardous drinking, harmful or alcohol dependence, for almost two thirds of drug queries.

Disclosure of interest

The authors have not supplied their declaration of competing interest.