Mortality in Patients With Substance Abuse: a Follow-Up in Stockholm County, 1973-1984

Examined the mortality of 1,630 patients with a least 1 diagnosis of substance abuse. Patients with opiate & central stimulant abuse ran an extremely high risk for early death compared to controls. In the total sample, 35% of all deaths were due to suicide. The central stimulant-abusing group had the highest proportion of suicides. The authors speculate that drug addicts seeking hospital care have a higher psychiatric morbidity & are more prone to suicide than IV addicts on the whole. (26 refs.)