Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2015 Sep 1;4(3):e23903.
doi: 10.5812/ijhrba.23903. eCollection 2015 Sep.

Effect of Abstinence on Depression, Anxiety, and Quality of Life in Chronic Methamphetamine Users in a Therapeutic Community

Maryam Bagheri  1 , Azarakhsh Mokri  2 , Aliakbar Khosravi  1 , Kourosh Kabir  3
Affiliations

Effect of Abstinence on Depression, Anxiety, and Quality of Life in Chronic Methamphetamine Users in a Therapeutic Community

Maryam Bagheri et al. Int J High Risk Behav Addict. .

Abstract

Background: During withdrawal, patients experience different symptoms. These symptoms are associated with relapse. Understanding different outcomes of methamphetamine abstinence is useful for finding better treatments for dependence.

Objectives: This study aimed to show the effects of abstinence on depression, anxiety, and quality of life in methamphetamine users.

Patients and methods: A prospective quasi-experimental (before and after study) method was used to show the effect of 3 weeks abstinence on depression, anxiety, and quality of life. A convenient sample of addicted people entered into the study and 34 people completed the study. Beck Depression Scale, Cattell Anxiety Inventory and Short Form Health Survey (SF-36) (for assessing quality of life), were used for outcome assessments.

Results: The mean depression score after abstinence decreased significantly (P < 0.001). Both hidden and obvious anxiety and total anxiety had a high level at admission and after 3 weeks of abstinence, the mean level of anxiety did not change significantly (P < 0.096). However, the quality of life increased after 3 weeks of abstinence (P < 0.001).

Conclusions: Depression and anxiety are prevalent in methamphetamine users. Short-term abstinence improves depression and quality of life but does not improve anxiety in methamphetamine abusers. During follow up of these patients, addressing depression and anxiety is important to achieve better results.

Keywords: Amphetamine-Related Disorders; Anxiety; Depression; Methamphetamine; Quality of Life; Substance Withdrawal Syndrome.

PubMed Disclaimer

References

    1. Degenhardt L, Hall W. Extent of illicit drug use and dependence, and their contribution to the global burden of disease. Lancet. 2012;379(9810):55–70. doi: 10.1016/S0140-6736(11)61138-0. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Barr AM, Panenka WJ, MacEwan GW, Thornton AE, Lang DJ, Honer WG, et al. The need for speed: an update on methamphetamine addiction. J Psychiatry Neurosci. 2006;31(5):301–13. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Singleton J, Degenhardt L, Hall W, Zabransky T. Mortality among amphetamine users: a systematic review of cohort studies. Drug Alcohol Depend. 2009;105(1-2):1–8. doi: 10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2009.05.028. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Whiteford HA, Degenhardt L, Rehm J, Baxter AJ, Ferrari AJ, Erskine HE, et al. Global burden of disease attributable to mental and substance use disorders: findings from the Global Burden of Disease Study 2010. Lancet. 2013;382(9904):1575–86. doi: 10.1016/S0140-6736(13)61611-6. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Degenhardt L, Whiteford HA, Ferrari AJ, Baxter AJ, Charlson FJ, Hall WD, et al. Global burden of disease attributable to illicit drug use and dependence: findings from the Global Burden of Disease Study 2010. Lancet. 2013;382(9904):1564–74. doi: 10.1016/S0140-6736(13)61530-5. - DOI - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources