A Longitudinal Population Based Analysis of Alcohol Use Disorders and Co-Occurring Mental Health Disorders in the Military Health System
Abstract
Alcohol Use Disorder (AUD) is a significant public health problem in the US. Further, US military and veteran samples consistently produce higher prevalence estimates of probable AUD, compared to the US general population. In addition, the literature indicates US military and veteran samples are at significantly higher risk of common mental health disorders co-occurring with AUD, compared to the US general population. This is important because co-occurring disorders have a negative impact on treatment outcomes. Utilizing the Military Health System (MHS) data repository (MDR) collected between FY2008 and FY2015, this study aimed to identify annual incidence rates of initial AUD diagnosis among active duty service members as well as the relation of demographic and military characteristics to initial AUD diagnosis. There was a 24.18% decline from FY2009 through FY2014, and a 15% increase from FY2014 to FY2015. Future research should examine how policy decisions used to determine the size of the active duty population impact annual incidence rates of initial combined AUD. Further, results indicated certain active duty service member groups (i.e., male, marital separation, other racial group, motor transportation personnel, senior officer, US Army personnel) were more likely to receive an initial combined AUD diagnosis over the study period.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jun 18, 2020
- Accession Number
- AD1186104
Entities
People
- Gim M. Reo
Organizations
- Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences