Social anxiety disorder (SAD) is highly comorbid with alcohol use disorders (AUD) yet the nature of this comorbidity remains unclear. To better understand these associations, we first examined whether SAD was related to AUD above and beyond relevant covariates. Second, we examined the psychosocial impairment associated with the comorbidity of SAD and AUD versus SAD without AUD. Third, the temporal sequencing of SAD and AUD among comorbid individuals was examined.
Together, these data lend support for the contention that SAD may serve as a risk for alcohol dependence and indicate that the co-occurrence of these two conditions may result in greater personal and public health care costs.
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