First Time DWI Offenders Often Have Multiple Problems

Most drivers arrested for the first time for driving while intoxicated are also likely to have drug abuse problems or psychiatric disorders, a new study finds.

That suggests that intervention programs for first-time DWI offenders should focus on more than just stopping their alcohol abuse, said lead researcher Dr. Stephanie O'Malley, professor of psychiatry at the Yale University School of Medicine.

Another expert agreed.

"If you just deal with the alcohol and not the other conditions, this study shows that relapse is quick," said David Rosenbloom, a professor of public health at the Boston University School of Public Health and director of Join Together, an organization that supports community-based efforts for alcohol and drug prevention and treatment programs.

Rosenbloom was not involved in the study, which is published in the April issue of Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research.

In the study, O'Malley's team looked at 290 first-time DWI offenders treated at group counseling services between October 1992 and September 1994 in the state of Connecticut.

They found that 42 percent had a lifetime history of drug abuse or dependence, usually marijuana. And 30 percent had a lifetime history of anxiety or mood disorders, usually social phobia or depression.

The study "demonstrates the importance of thorough intervention at the first arrest for DWI,' said Rosenbloom.”The first time someone is arrested is unlikely to be the first time they drove while intoxicated. People arrested for drunk driving have serious problems. The results of this study again demonstrate you really have to treat alcohol, drug and psychiatric conditions together."