Intravenous drug use in alcoholics.

The importance of a history of self-administration of drugs intravenously was evaluated in 507 consecutive inpatient male primary alcoholics and primary drug abusers with secondary alcoholism. The subjects were divided into three groups: Group 1 comprised 47 alcoholic men who had primary drug abuse, Group 2 comprised 42 primary alcoholics who used drugs intravenously but did not meet other diagnostic criteria for drug abuse, and Group 3 comprised 418 primary alcoholics who neither met diagnostic criteria for drug abuse nor had taken drugs intravenously. Interviews at the time of entry into the treatment program included the patient and two resource persons; follow-up was complete in 96% of the original sample. Subjects who did not meet research criteria for drug abuse but had taken drugs intravenously more closely resembled the primary drug abusers than they did the primary alcoholics in regard to the course of problems before entering treatment and the 1-year outcome.