Does depression predict relapse in the 6 months following treatment for men with alcohol dependence?

OBJECTIVE

To investigate whether depression measured at the time of treatment predicts relapse of alcohol dependence in the 6 months following treatment of alcohol-dependent men.

METHOD

Ninety-three subjects with moderate-severe alcohol dependence (DSM-III-R), recruited from a 3-week, abstinence-focused therapeutic program, were assessed for current and lifetime major depression using the SCID-P and baseline depressive symptoms using the SCL-90, and then followed up for 6 months. Drinking outcomes were based on multiple sources of data.

RESULTS

Relapse was not associated with either lifetime major depression, or baseline depressive symptoms; inadequate numbers of subjects with a current major depression precluded statistical analysis of this variable.

CONCLUSIONS

Neither lifetime major depression, nor the degree of depressive symptoms in alcohol-dependent men at the time of treatment, compromise drinking outcomes in the 6 months following treatment.