Posttraumatic Stress Disorder and Alcohol Misuse Among Women: Effects of Ethnic Minority Stressors

Overview

Journal Soc Psychiatry Psychiatr Epidemiol

Specialties Psychiatry
Public Health
Social Sciences

Date 2015 Aug 13

PMID 26266627

Citations 4

Authors

Sherry Lipsky

Mary A Kernic

Qian Qiu

Deborah S Hasin

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

Purpose: The aims of this study were to examine the relationship between adult-onset posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and subsequent alcohol use outcomes (frequent heavy drinking, alcohol abuse, and alcohol dependence) in non-Hispanic white, non-Hispanic black, and Hispanic US women, and whether this relationship was moderated by ethnic minority stressors (discrimination and acculturation).

Methods: The study sample was drawn from two waves of the National Epidemiologic Surveys of Alcohol and Related Conditions, employing time-dependent data to conduct multiple extended Cox regression.

Results: Women with PTSD were over 50 % more likely than those without PTSD to develop alcohol dependence [adjusted hazards ratio (aHR) 1.55; 95 % confidence interval (CI) 1.15, 2.08]. Hispanic and black women were at lower risk of most alcohol outcomes than white women. In race-/ethnic-specific analyses, however, PTSD only predicted alcohol abuse among Hispanic women (aHR 3.02; CI 1.33, 6.84). Higher acculturation was positively associated with all alcohol outcomes among Hispanic women and discrimination was associated with AUD among Hispanic and black women. Acculturation and discrimination modified the effect of PTSD on AUD among Hispanic women: PTSD predicted alcohol dependence among those with low acculturation (aHR 10.2; CI 1.27, 81.80) and alcohol abuse among those without reported discrimination (aHR 6.39; CI 2.76, 16.49).

Conclusions: PTSD may influence the development of hazardous drinking, especially among Hispanic women. The influence of PTSD on alcohol outcomes is most apparent, however, when ethnic minority stressors are not present.

Citing Articles

Influence of childhood trauma and traumatic stress on a woman's risk of having a child with a fetal alcohol spectrum disorder.

Parker M, May P, Marais A, de Vries M, Kalberg W, Buckley D Alcohol Clin Exp Res (Hoboken). 2024; 48(6):1176-1188.

PMID: 38702143 PMC: 11178454. DOI: 10.1111/acer.15334.

Racial Microaggressions Mediate the Association Between Posttraumatic Stress and Alcohol Use Among Women of Color Experiencing Intimate Partner Violence.

Goldstein S, Forkus S, Fenn N, Thomas E, Suazo N, Weiss N J Dual Diagn. 2024; 20(4):303-317.

PMID: 38615676 PMC: 11471869. DOI: 10.1080/15504263.2024.2336629.

Perceived Racial/Ethnic Discrimination and Mental Health: a Review and Future Directions for Social Epidemiology.

Vines A, Ward J, Cordoba E, Black K Curr Epidemiol Rep. 2017; 4(2):156-165.

PMID: 28920011 PMC: 5596659. DOI: 10.1007/s40471-017-0106-z.

How life stressors influence modifiable lifestyle factors, depressive symptoms, and physical and mental health among Vietnamese older women?.

Dao-Tran T, Anderson D, Seib C BMC Psychiatry. 2017; 17(1):232.

PMID: 28662638 PMC: 5492294. DOI: 10.1186/s12888-017-1395-y.

References

Grant B, Dawson D, Stinson F, Chou P, Kay W, Pickering R . The Alcohol Use Disorder and Associated Disabilities Interview Schedule-IV (AUDADIS-IV): reliability of alcohol consumption, tobacco use, family history of depression and psychiatric diagnostic modules in a general population sample. Drug Alcohol Depend. 2003; 71(1):7-16. DOI: 10.1016/s0376-8716(03)00070-x. View

Torvik F, Rognmo K, Tambs K . Alcohol use and mental distress as predictors of non-response in a general population health survey: the HUNT study. Soc Psychiatry Psychiatr Epidemiol. 2011; 47(5):805-16. PMC: 3328681. DOI: 10.1007/s00127-011-0387-3. View

Caetano R, Ramisetty-Mikler S, Rodriguez L . The Hispanic Americans Baseline Alcohol Survey (HABLAS): the association between birthplace, acculturation and alcohol abuse and dependence across Hispanic national groups. Drug Alcohol Depend. 2008; 99(1-3):215-21. PMC: 2760946. DOI: 10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2008.08.011. View

Siefert K, Bowman P, Heflin C, DANZIGER S, Williams D . Social and environmental predictors of maternal depression in current and recent welfare recipients. Am J Orthopsychiatry. 2000; 70(4):510-22. DOI: 10.1037/h0087688. View

Lorenzo-Blanco E, Delva J . Examining lifetime episodes of sadness, help seeking, and perceived treatment helpfulness among US Latino/as. Community Ment Health J. 2011; 48(5):611-26. PMC: 8154371. DOI: 10.1007/s10597-011-9426-5. View

Kessler R, Berglund P, Demler O, Jin R, Merikangas K, Walters E . Lifetime prevalence and age-of-onset distributions of DSM-IV disorders in the National Comorbidity Survey Replication. Arch Gen Psychiatry. 2005; 62(6):593-602. DOI: 10.1001/archpsyc.62.6.593. View

Bergman P, Ahlberg G, Forsell Y, Lundberg I . Non-participation in the second wave of the PART study on mental disorder and its effects on risk estimates. Int J Soc Psychiatry. 2010; 56(2):119-32. DOI: 10.1177/0020764008098838. View

Trocchio S, Chassler D, Storbjork J, Delucchi K, Witbrodt J, Lundgren L . The association between self-reported mental health status and alcohol and drug abstinence 5 years post-assessment for an addiction disorder in U.S. and Swedish samples. J Addict Dis. 2013; 32(2):180-93. PMC: 3854960. DOI: 10.1080/10550887.2013.795468. View

van Loon A, Tijhuis M, Picavet H, Surtees P, Ormel J . Survey non-response in the Netherlands: effects on prevalence estimates and associations. Ann Epidemiol. 2003; 13(2):105-10. DOI: 10.1016/s1047-2797(02)00257-0. View

10.

Otiniano Verissimo A, Gee G, Ford C, Iguchi M . Racial discrimination, gender discrimination, and substance abuse among Latina/os nationwide. Cultur Divers Ethnic Minor Psychol. 2014; 20(1):43-51. PMC: 4060885. DOI: 10.1037/a0034674. View

11.

Krueger R . The structure of common mental disorders. Arch Gen Psychiatry. 1999; 56(10):921-6. DOI: 10.1001/archpsyc.56.10.921. View

12.

Caetano R, Ramisetty-Mikler S, McGrath C . Characteristics of non-respondents in a US national longitudinal survey on drinking and intimate partner violence. Addiction. 2003; 98(6):791-7. DOI: 10.1046/j.1360-0443.2003.00407.x. View

13.

Platt J, Keyes K, Koenen K . Size of the social network versus quality of social support: which is more protective against PTSD?. Soc Psychiatry Psychiatr Epidemiol. 2013; 49(8):1279-86. PMC: 7864543. DOI: 10.1007/s00127-013-0798-4. View

14.

Krieger N, Sidney S, Coakley E . Racial discrimination and skin color in the CARDIA study: implications for public health research. Coronary Artery Risk Development in Young Adults. Am J Public Health. 1998; 88(9):1308-13. PMC: 1509091. DOI: 10.2105/ajph.88.9.1308. View

15.

Savage J, Mezuk B . Psychosocial and contextual determinants of alcohol and drug use disorders in the National Latino and Asian American Study. Drug Alcohol Depend. 2014; 139:71-8. PMC: 4117235. DOI: 10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2014.03.011. View

16.

Bartoli F, Carra G, Crocamo C, Clerici M . From DSM-IV to DSM-5 alcohol use disorder: an overview of epidemiological data. Addict Behav. 2014; 41:46-50. DOI: 10.1016/j.addbeh.2014.09.029. View

17.

Yen I, Ragland D, Greiner B, Fisher J . Racial discrimination and alcohol-related behavior in urban transit operators: findings from the San Francisco Muni Health and Safety Study. Public Health Rep. 1999; 114(5):448-58. PMC: 1308517. DOI: 10.1093/phr/114.5.448. View

18.

Coronado G, Thompson B, McLerran D, Schwartz S, Koepsell T . A short acculturation scale for Mexican-American populations. Ethn Dis. 2005; 15(1):53-62. View

19.

Vega W, Sribney W, Achara-Abrahams I . Co-occurring alcohol, drug, and other psychiatric disorders among Mexican-origin people in the United States. Am J Public Health. 2003; 93(7):1057-64. PMC: 1447903. DOI: 10.2105/ajph.93.7.1057. View

20.

Stewart S, Pihl R, Conrod P, DONGIER M . Functional associations among trauma, PTSD, and substance-related disorders. Addict Behav. 1998; 23(6):797-812. DOI: 10.1016/s0306-4603(98)00070-7. View