title: Drugs and Psychosis Project: a multi-centre European study on comorbidity.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  This paper describes the sociodemographic characteristics of 196 psychotic patients admitted to acute psychiatric wards in the UK, Denmark, Germany and Italy, with the aim of comparing comorbid with non-comorbid patients.
  
  
  METHODS
  It is a prospective field study with repeated measures at 1, 6 and 12 months. Patients were recruited from acute psychiatric wards in four European centres. They were grouped as comorbid or not on the basis of urine analysis. The Schedules for Clinical Assessment in Neuropsychiatry was used to provide a psychiatric diagnosis, and the Positive and Negative Symptom Severity Scale for further information on specific symptoms with results from the Fragerstrom test for nicotine dependence also reported.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Comorbid patients were younger than those who were not but did not differ significantly in the other sociodemographic measures. Differences in sociodemographic characteristics of patients between centres were apparent. Comorbid patients had higher levels of positive and lower levels of negative symptoms than those who were non-comorbid. Differences were found in the patterns of drug use between comorbid patients who were using cannabis compared with those who were not.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Cross-cultural differences in the sociodemographic characteristics of the comorbid patient population give us a better insight into this heterogenous group.
authors: Centre for Addiction Research and Education Scotland, Section of Psychiatry and Neuroscience, Dundee, Scotland, UK. a.baldacchino@dundee.ac.uk
authors: Alex
authors: A
authors: Baldacchino
authors: Hannah
authors: H
authors: Blair
authors: Norbert
authors: N
authors: Scherbaum
authors: Eva
authors: E
authors: Grosse-Vehne
authors: Marco
authors: M
authors: Riglietta
authors: Laura
authors: L
authors: Tidone
authors: Caterina
authors: C
authors: Criaco
authors: Maria C
authors: MC
authors: Marelli
authors: Borge
authors: B
authors: Sommer
authors: Liz
authors: L
authors: Tan
authors: Hilary
authors: H
authors: Little
authors: Hamid
authors: H
authors: Ghodse
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D003431:Cross-Cultural Comparison; D017831:Diagnosis, Dual (Psychiatry); D005060:Europe / Q000453:epidemiology; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011446:Prospective Studies; D011567:Psychiatric Department, Hospital / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D011594:Psychometrics; D011618:Psychotic Disorders / Q000150:complications*; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D015813:Substance Abuse Detection / Q000379:methods; D019966:Substance-Related Disorders / Q000150:complications*; D055815:Young Adult