Pharmacotherapy of Comorbid Mood, Anxiety, and Substance Use Disorders

Abstract

Mood and anxiety disorders commonly co-occur with substance use disorders. Exploration of the neurobiology of substance use disorders and mood and anxiety disorders have found that the neural circuitry in mood, anxiety, and substance use disorders is clearly overlapping. These discoveries have encouraged the exploration of a number of pharmacotherapeutic agents in the treatment of co-occurring mood, anxiety, and substance use disorders. In this article, recent data on the pharmacotherapeutic treatment of mood and anxiety disorders in individuals with substance use disorders are reviewed. Some of the barriers to the use of pharmacotherapy in individuals with substance use disorders are discussed.

Keywords:

• substance use
• mood disorders
• anxiety disorders
• depression
• bipolar disorder
• panic disorder
• post-traumatic stress disorder
• obsessive compulsive disorder
• social phobia
• alcohol
• cocaine
• marijuana
• opiates

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Kathleen T. Brady

Kathleen T. Brady, M.D., Ph.D., is Professor of Psychiatry at the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston. She is also Director of Clinical Neuroscience in the Department of Psychiatry and Associate Director of the General Clinical Research Center. Dr. Brady became President of the American Academy of Addiction Psychiatry in 2003. The author of more than 150 scientific papers and book chapters, Dr. Brady is Associate Editor of Substance Abuse and a member of the Editorial Board of several journals, including American Journal on Addictions, Drug and Alcohol Dependence, and the American Journal of Drug and Alcohol Abuse. She has received numerous honors for her work in addiction research, including a Distinguished Psychiatrist Lecturer Award from the American Psychiatric Association and the Betty Ford Award from the Association for Medical Education and Research in Substance Abuse. Dr. Brady received her medical degree from the Medical University of South Carolina and her doctoral degree in pharmacology from the Medical College of Virginia in Richmond. She completed her residency in psychiatry and an addiction psychiatry fellowship at the Medical University of South Carolina.

Marcia L. Verduin

Marcia L. Verduin, M.D., is Assistant Professor of Psychiatry at the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston. She received her medical degree from the University of Florida and completed her general psychiatry residency and a combined research and clinical Fellowship in Addiction Psychiatry at the Medical University of South Carolina. During her residency, Dr. Verduin was the recipient of several honors, including the Laughlin and PRITE Fellowships through the American College of Psychiatrists and the Ginsberg Fellowship through the American Association of Directors of Psychiatric Residency Training. Her research interests include treatment-related research for substance use disorders with a focus on dually-diagnosed bipolar individuals.