Alcoholic patients with secondary depression

Abstract

This study of alcoholic patients with and without secondary depression showed that the 2 groups were almost identical in demographic characteristics, early-life antisocial problems, quantity and frequency of drinking and family history of affective disorder. The depressed patients reported slightly more alcoholism in their 1st-degree male relatives and tended to have more alcohol-related life problems. The only significant difference between the 2 groups was that the depressed patients were heavier users of drugs other than alcohol. Thus severe depression in alcoholics may be related to a greater intake of drugs in addition to alcohol.