Title
Deaths of Despair: Negative Affect/Hyperkatifeia, Addiction and Co-Occurring Psychiatric Disorders – A Brainstorm with George Koob on the Future of Comorbidity Research
Speakers
Edward Nunes, MD; Frances R. Levin, MD; Denise Hein, PhD; Jeffrey Miller, PhD.; George Koob, PhD
Summary
Co-occurrence of substance and other psychiatric disorders is ubiquitous. Psychiatric disorders, including depression, AttentionDeficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), anxiety disorders, and schizophrenia commonly co-occur with substance use disorders, including alcohol, opioids, stimulants, cannabis and nicotine. Comorbidity is associated with worse prognosis and the coordinated care of these patients remains a challenge. This Mini-Symposium began with brief encapsulations of what we have learned from clinical research on: Depression, presented by Dr. Edward Nunes; ADHD, presented by Dr. Frances Levin; PTSD, presented by Dr. Denise Hien; and Suicide, presented by Dr. Jeffrey Miller. The program featured Dr. George Koob, Director of the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, who discussed the thesis and supporting pre-clinical and clinical evidence on negative affect or “hyperkatifeia” as a key driver of substance use disorders and potential mechanism underlying comorbidity.
