4th Edition of Psychiatry and Addiction World Conference 2026

Abstract

Objectives: Substance use has emerged as a major public health concern, impacting a vast number of individuals worldwide. According to the World Drug Report 2021, an estimated 275 million people used substances globally in 2020, representing a prevalence of 0.55% and a 22% increase from 2010; in Taiwan, the estimated prevalence in 2020 was approximately 0.6%. Furthermore, another epidemiological study revealed a lifetime prevalence of up to 1.29% for illicit drug use, underscoring the undeniable impact of substance use in the region. As Substance Use Disorder (SUD) remains a critical global public health issue, the development of integrated psychosocial interventions is urgently needed. The current study aims to identify predictors of treatment dropout among patients with SUD.

Methods: We recruited illicit substance users receiving integrated therapy—comprising case management, clinical treatment, and psychological interventions—between 2018 and 2023. Demographic data collected at enrollment included sex, employment status, marital status, physical comorbidities, concurrent substance use, age, and years of education. Additionally, baseline substance use severity and psychiatric comorbidities were assessed using the Severity of Dependence Scale (SDS), the Adult ADHD Self-Report Scale (ASRS), the Drug Avoidance Self-Efficacy Scale (DASES), the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), and the Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI). Patients were regularly followed in the outpatient department to calculate the three-month dropout rate and to identify factors influencing treatment attrition. All tests were two-tailed, and statistical significance was set at p < 0.05. All data were analyzed using SPSS version 23.0 for Windows.

Results: A total of 132 participants were recruited into the treatment program, of whom 72 subsequently dropped out. Among the included participants, 87.9% (n=116) were male, and 34.8% (n=46) presented with comorbid alcohol use disorder. The presence of comorbid alcohol use disorder significantly increased the risk of dropout during the three-month follow-up period. However, baseline scores on the SDS, ASRS, DASES, BDI, and BAI demonstrated no significant predictive value for outpatient treatment dropout among patients with SUD.

Discussion: The present study evaluates early treatment attrition rates and their associated factors within an integrated therapy framework. Psychological treatments for illicit substance use typically emphasize cognitive approaches. Nevertheless, comorbid alcohol use disorder may attenuate the efficacy of these psychological interventions, potentially leading to non-adherence to integrated therapy. Therefore, the early identification of dropout predictors is crucial, enabling healthcare professionals to tailor alternative approaches and enhance overall treatment efficacy.