The prevalence of psychiatric co-morbidity among opioid addicts - A quantitative meta-analysis

Objective: To statistically pool prevalence estimates of all studies on co-morbid psychiatric disorders in samples of opioid addicts. Methods: 16 studies were identified which comprised 3754 opioid addicts. Meta-analysis was conducted using precision weighted algorithms. Results: 78% of the opiate addicts had at least one co-morbid psychiatric disorder at least once in their lifetime. Especially personality disorders had a high prevalence (42%). The second highest prevalence was found with mood disorders (31%), the third highest prevalence was anxiety disorders with 8%. Conclusions: The high prevalence of psychiatric disorders among opioid addicts signaled the need to improve and develop better treatment programs.