Citation

Vujanovic AA, McGrew SJ, Walton JL, Raines AM. Addict. Behav. 2021; ePub(ePub): ePub.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2021, Elsevier Publishing)

DOI

10.1016/j.addbeh.2021.107177

PMID

34801295

Abstract

The co-occurrence of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and substance use disorders (SUD) is highly prevalent among military veterans and represents a difficult-to-treat comorbidity. Distress intolerance (DI; i.e., the perceived inability to tolerate negative emotional states) and anxiety sensitivity (AS, i.e., the fear of anxiety-related sensations) are two promising targetable mechanisms with potential to predict and improve treatment outcomes for veterans with PTSD/SUD. We hypothesized that PTSD symptom severity would be related to (a) alcohol use severity and (b) drug use severity through DI and AS, evaluated concurrently. Participants included 120 military veterans (98.3% male; M(age) = 41.41, SD = 10.77) presenting for psychological services at a Veterans Affairs PTSD/SUD clinic.

RESULTS indicated that PTSD symptom severity was related to alcohol use severity through AS, but not DI; and PTSD symptom severity was related to drug use severity through DI, but not AS. Clinical and research implications are discussed.

Language: en

Keywords

Trauma; Alcohol; PTSD; Anxiety sensitivity; Distress; Intolerance; Substance use; Veterans