Alcohol dependence also was associated with heavy past cocaine use and lifetime dependence severity, as well as lifetime withdrawal severity--consistent with prior findings of more severe medical (Salloum et al., 2004) and psychosocial problems (Flannery et al., 2004) among individuals with comorbid alcohol and cocaine dependence. Also, alcohol dependence was associated with the use of treatment or self-help for cocaine dependence. However, co-occurring alcohol and cocaine dependence may be less amenable to change through treatment or self-help programs than cocaine dependence alone (Schmitz et al., 2004) or alcohol dependence alone (Flannery et al., 2004). The increased cocaine dependence severity associated with co-occurring alcohol dependence may lead to treatment seeking and self-help participation, while also reducing cocaine dependent persons’ responsiveness to treatment or self-help services.
