NCJ Number
156001
Journal
Journal of Psychoactive Drugs Volume: 26 Issue: 4 Dated: (October-December 1994) Pages: 357-360
Date Published
1994
Length
4 pages
Annotation
This study was designed to provide a prevalence rate of childhood abuse in patients being treated for alcohol and other drug problems and to compare the extent of trauma symptoms that were present in substance abusers with and without childhood histories of physical, sexual, and emotional abuse.
Abstract
Subjects were 100 males on an inpatient substance abuse treatment unit at a midwestern Veterans Administration Medical Center. Sixty-four were alcohol abusers, 33 were polysubstance abusers, and three were diagnosed with cocaine abuse. Sixty-two had no current Axis I psychiatric condition. The subjects completed a standard test battery that included the Trauma Symptom Checklist and the Dissociative Experiences Scale. Clinical information that pertained to history of childhood abuse was obtained from the subjects' medical charts. Results show that 34 percent of the sample reported a history of childhood abuse. Although this group did have higher mean scores on all the scales compared to the nonabused group, there was no statistical significance. There was no apparent relationship between abuse history and level of education, IQ, race, drug of choice, or psychiatric comorbidity. Thus, a tentative conclusion is that substance abusers with histories of childhood abuse are heterogeneous with regard to many demographic and clinical variables. Study limitations are discussed, and the researchers suggest that further study in this area is warranted. 1 table and 16 references