title: Depressive disorders and alcohol dependence in a community population.
abstract: This cross-sectional study examines sociodemographic, clinical and func tional correlates of comorbid depression in a community sample of 268 individuals with alcohol dependence. Results of analyses comparing drinkers with either current or past depression to never-depressed drinkers showed that respondents in the former two groups were more likely to be female and report more comorbid drug use disorders. In addition to marked functional impairment for currently depressed drinkers, we also found that respondents with past depression were significantly less likely to have health insurance coverage. This lack of insurance for previously depressed persons calls for future work examining the potential influence of this barrier to access care on both clinical and functional outcomes.
authors.affiliation: VA HSR&D Center for Mental Healthcare and Outcomes Research, Central Arkansas Veterans Healthcare System, North Little Rock 72114-1706, USA. KirchnerJoAnnE@uams.edu
authors.forename: JoAnn E
authors.initials: JE
authors.lastname: Kirchner
authors.forename: Geoffrey M
authors.initials: GM
authors.lastname: Curran
authors.forename: Carol R
authors.initials: CR
authors.lastname: Thrush
authors.forename: Richard R
authors.initials: RR
authors.lastname: Owen
authors.forename: John C
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Fortney
authors.forename: Brenda M
authors.initials: BM
authors.lastname: Booth
mesh_terms: D000437:Alcoholism / Q000453:epidemiology*; D015897:Comorbidity; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D003866:Depressive Disorder / Q000453:epidemiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D016015:Logistic Models; D008297:Male; D017057:Medically Uninsured; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors