Demographic and clinical characteristics of treatment seeking women with full and subthreshold PTSD and concurrent cannabis and cocaine use disorders

While the detrimental effects of concurrent substance use disorders (SUDs) are now being well documented, very few studies have examined this comorbidity among women with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Data for these analyses were derived from the “Women and Trauma” study conducted within the National Drug Abuse Treatment Clinical Trials Network. Women with full or subthreshold PTSD and co-occurring cannabis use disorder (CUD) and cocaine use disorder (COD; N = 99) were compared to their counterparts with co-occurring CUD only (N = 26) and co-occurring COD only (N = 161) on rates of trauma exposure, psychiatric disorders, psychosocial problems, and other substance use utilizing a set of multivariate logistic regressions. In models adjusted for age and race/ethnicity, women with PTSD and COD only were significantly older than their counterparts with CUD only and concurrent CUD + COD. Relative to those with CUD only, women with concurrent CUD + COD had higher odds of adult sexual assault. Relative to those with COD only, women with concurrent CUD + COD had higher odds of alcohol use disorder in the past 12 months. Finally, relative to those with CUD only, women with COD only had higher odds of ever being arrested/convicted and adult sexual assault. The higher rates of adult sexual assault and alcohol use disorder among those with concurrent CUD + COD suggest the need for trauma-informed approaches that can respond to the needs of this dually-diagnosed population. Moreover, the causal link between repeated traumatic stress exposure and polysubstance use requires further examination.