The present study is investigating posttraumatic stress disorder among male with substance dependence in treatment.

Forty drug-addicted men participated of this study. All the subjects were psychiatric outpatients of Ippad, Porto Alegre, Brazil. They completed the following instruments: Specific Traumatic Events Scale, Davidson Trauma Scale, Beck Depression Inventory, Sociodemographic characteristics. The measures were a self-report. SPSS 12.5 was used by the statistical analyses. Descriptive statistics include frequency, percents and means. Significance of 5%.

Overall the patients 30% had PTSD. The patients with PTSD had more family members with abuse or drugs dependence (66,7% versus 54,5%), related more exposure trauma (6,3 versus 4), when compared without PTSD. The PTSD patients punctuated more symptoms in Davidson Trauma Scale (12,8 versus 4,8). Punctuated more frequency and severity of symptoms’, mainly, hypercitability. The more frequent trauma was mugged or threatened with a weapon, 84,1%.

Psychiatric comorbidity is common among addicted patients. Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a highly symptomatic anxiety disorder of acute onset after a major distressing life-event. In clinical practice, patients suffering from drug addiction invariably report the occurrence of psychologically stressful episodes, with frequencies of PTSD ranging from 30% to 60%. Among patients suffering from alcohol or other drugs dependence, the prevalence of PTSD is estimated to range between 10% and 40%. Global response to treatment was achieved after the recognition and appropriate treatment of the latter condition, along with the combined approach to other comorbid disorders.