Childhood trauma and health outcomes in adults with comorbid substance abuse and mental health disorders.

This study describes the prevalence of childhood traumatic events (CTEs) among adults with comorbid substance use disorders (SUDs) and mental health problems (MHPs) and assesses the relation between cumulative CTEs and adult health outcomes. Adults with SUDs/MHPs (N=402) were recruited from residential treatment programs and interviewed at treatment admission. Exposures to 9 types of adverse childhood experiences were summed and categorized into 6 ordinal levels of exposure.

Family environment factors and substance abuse severity in an HMO adolescent treatment population.

To examine how parental limit setting, family conflict, and perception of family experience influence severity of alcohol and drug problems, and important gender differences in these relationships, we interviewed consecutive intakes, aged 12 to 18 years, at 4 chemical dependency programs of a large group-model nonprofit health maintenance organization (HMO) (n=419). The Family Conflict, Limit Setting, and Positive Family Experience scales correlated with substance dependence (p<0.01, p<0.