Sleep disturbances (SD) and mental health disorders (MHD), individually and comorbid, significantly predict subsequent treatment of illicit drug and alcohol use disorder in primary care, a recent study found. Therefore, screening and evaluation for SD should be a routine practice in primary care to help with identifying alcohol use disorder (SUD) risk. Researchers used electronic health records data from ambulatory primary care in a safety net Boston area healthcare system from 2013-2015 (n=83,920). SUD (separated into illicit drug use disorder and alcohol use disorder) and MHD were identified through ICD-9 codes and medical record documentation. They found:

• Compared to patients with no sleep or MHD, patients with SD had a greater risk for subsequent SUD treatment.
• Approximately one-fifth of patients with SD were treated for an illicit drug use disorder and approximately 12% were treated for SUD.
• Risk for SUD treatment, estimated at over 30% by the end of the study, was greatest for patients with a MHD, either alone or comorbid with SD.
• Risk was greater for older patients and men, and lower for minority patients.