Studies conducted in different parts of the world have shown that comorbidity is híghly prevalent among psychíatric dísorders and drug abuse. However, identifying coexisting psychopathology in drug users presents several specifíc methodologícal problems that affect the results, making comparisons across dífferent settíngs and places difficult. This artícle, through the evaluation of the literature based on empírical research, found that differences in the rates of such comorbidity obtained from previous studies may be due to dífferences in: 1) the diagnostic criteria and interview techníques used; 2) the samples studíed; 3) the tíming of the assessment; or 4) the establishment of a temporal sequence for the events. Despite these important obstacles, the evaluation of these questions in epidemiologíc studies has contributed with creative solutions that allowed an optimístíc scenario for the future directions of research in this area.
Epidemiologíc studies; psychíatric comorbídíty; psychiatric disorders; drug abuse