Gender Difference In Substance Use And Psychiatric Outcomes Among Dually Diagnosed Veterans Treated

In view of the growing problem of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) among female veterans, which is particularly challenging when seen with comorbid substance use disorder (SUD), researchers sought to assess if the outcomes among dually diagnosed women differ from men. They assessed national program evaluation data from 7,074 dually diagnosed veterans including 203 women (2.9%) managed at 57 specialized intensive VHA PTSD treatment programs between 1993 and 2011 obtained at admission and 4 months following discharge. Findings suggest that substance use or PTSD outcomes did not differ significantly by sex, even with the extreme minority status of women in VHA programs. Even if treatment is not formally customized to address gender-specific requirements, highly vulnerable women can achieve a benefit comparable to men.

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