ABSTRACT
The purpose of the study was to analyse influencing factors on drug-related death. Contact behaviour and life events in the forefield of drug-related death were of special interest. During a period of 5 years 189 drug-related deaths were investigated in the German town Essen (inhabitants about 600,000). 53.4 % of 189 people with drug-related death had contact to specialised institutes for drug addicts during lifetime. However, only about 15 % of this group contacted these institutes over the period of the last three months. Additionally, 26 of the 189 persons had a psychiatric comorbid diagnosis, and this subgroup also demonstrated a restricted contact behaviour. Life events during lifetime and especially during the last 3 months seemed to be of influence upon the circumstances of drug-related death. According to this study, there seems to exist a turning away from professional institutions towards the end of the drug career which makes the documentation of influencing factors on drug-related death more difficult. Turning away from the help system is not the reason for drug-related death, but an important attendant circumstance.
Subject(s)
Life Change Events , Patient Acceptance of Health Care/psychology , Substance-Related Disorders/mortality , Substance-Related Disorders/psychology , Comorbidity , Crime , Germany/epidemiology , Humans , Mental Disorders/complications , Mental Disorders/psychology , Substance-Related Disorders/rehabilitation , Substance-Related Disorders/therapyABSTRACT
Section F3 (affective disorders) of ICD-10 has preserved a high degree of continuity with respect to ICD-9, and a strong convergence towards DSM-III-R affective disorders is evident. Despite this tendency, some categories, like F31, F33 and F36, need further specification. In general, section F3 was adequately accepted by clinicians, easy to use and proved to be user-friendly for a wide variety of psychiatrists with different orientation.
