Substance Use Disorder

New findings on a not-so-new epidemic have two key implications for psychiatrists.

Medical professionals don’t want to prescribe too many pain killers, which may contribute to the epidemic of opioid misuse, yet they don’t want patients to needlessly suffer.

Cocaine, psychostimulant, and opioid deaths continue to climb, and polysubstance opioid overdose deaths outnumber opioid-only deaths-these and other reports headline the latest developments.

How many of us, during clinical encounters with patients, focus on their families, their social communities, their sources of human contact and support?

Our job as clinicians, our privilege, is to help our patients stay alive until they can engage and benefit from good treatment.

Despite growing awareness and dangers of opioid diversion, misuse among the aging population has skyrocketed.

On December 27, I learned that my pregnancy would not come to fruition with a baby for me. The healing process begins for me as it has for countless women before me. More in Portrait of a Psychiatrist.

A quick overview of the latest advances in substance use and abuse research.

A small exploratory study provides a first look at the role of social relationships in maintaining sobriety.

"He'll just have to hit bottom." That bit of outdated advice can be terrifying. How do clinicians trying to help the person with an addiction who refuses to set foot in our office render assistance?

Opioids, suicide, and Alzheimer disease all play a large role in the life expectancy drop reported by the CDC.

Should hallucinogens such as ketamine, MDMA, psilocybin, and LSD be considered as treatment options for patients with mental illness?

Symptoms of alcohol and drug intoxication and withdrawal may resemble symptoms of bipolar disorder, making it difficult to diagnose and treat.

Seven common questions about addiction clinicians regularly hear-as well as the answers.

What factors predict if a homeless person will be able to engage in supported housing to attain and retain an apartment? What supportive services facilitate permanent exits from homelessness?

Research published more than 25 years ago was already reporting problems with opioid analgesics.

In this age of chat rooms and social media, an ever-growing number of psychiatric patients use the internet to find their treatment community online.

More than 6 out of 10 deaths involve prescribed opioids. The authors address guidelines for who should (and who should not) receive a naloxone prescription.

Several updates to ICD-10-CM affect the diagnostic codes used by mental health practitioners. One important update involves the codes for substance use disorders. Details here.

Which sleep parameters are increased in alcohol use disorders? Take the quiz and learn more.

What's the optimal strategy toward recovery from opioid use disorder? Which treatment for nicotine addiction has the most favorable adverse-effect profile?

The authors compare the clinical features of idiopathic psychosis (eg, schizophrenia) with cannabis-induced psychosis.

It is vital that psychiatrists are able to identify and characterize cannabis use disorders; provide education; and offer effective, evidence-based treatments. This article provides a brief overview of each of these topics.

This article summarizes data on e-cigarettes, provides recommendations and resources to learn more, and emphasizes the evidence for treating tobacco (traditional cigarettes) addiction in people with mental illness.

Because comorbid substance abuse is the rule rather than the exception in individuals with ADHD, accurate diagnosis, prognosis, and management of ADHD is challenging even for the most skilled practitioners.

A clinical collection on addiction treatment, ADHD and SUDs, important drug indications, vaping, cannabis use, benzodiazepines, the perils of self-medicating and other topics relevant to practicing psychiatrists.

Significant progress has been made in containing the opioid epidemic, but new threats loom. Thomas Kosten, MD, an addiction psychiatrist, takes a brief look.

Numerous lines of evidence suggest a correlation between cannabis consumption and a variety of psychiatric conditions, including cannabis-induced psychosis.

The main goal in treating addiction is to help the patient achieve and improve functioning. When that patient is also an adolescent, there are special considerations. Here's a quick primer.

Appropriate use of benzodiazepines in patients with a substance use disorder is an important skill. Here are some important considerations.