Anxiety symptoms in Chinese people who use methamphetamine: Prevalence, demographics, and clinical characteristic

Abstract

Abstract Background Anxiety is a common comorbidity during methamphetamine withdrawal. However, few studies have investigated comorbid anxiety in methamphetamine- dependent patients in the Chinese population. The main purpose of this study was to explore the prevalence and factors associated with comorbid anxiety during withdrawal in Chinese male methamphetamine dependent individuals. Methods In this cross-sectional study, we recruited 802 methamphetamine use patients from a drug rehabilitation center in China and collected general and sociodemographic information. For all participants, we used the Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI) self-report scale to assess anxiety symptoms, the Desire for Drug Questionnaire (DDQ) to assess drug craving, and the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) to assess sleep quality. Results The prevalence of comorbid anxiety symptoms in MA use patients was 19.7% (157/796). Chi-square test showed significant differences in suicidal ideation, smoking, craving, and sleep disturbances between MA use patients with and without anxiety symptoms (all p < 0.05). Furthermore, binary logistic regression revealed that suicidal ideation, drug craving, and sleep disturbances were associated with anxiety symptoms in MA use patients (all p < 0.05). Correlation analysis demonstrated that anxiety symptoms were positively associated with suicidal ideation, withdrawal period, and drug craving, but negatively with sleep quality (all p < 0.05). Stepwise multiple regression analysis indicated that suicidal ideation, withdrawal period, drug craving, and sleep quality remained significantly associated with the severity of anxiety symptoms. Conclusion Our results indicate a relatively higher prevalence of comorbid anxiety in Chinese MA use patients. Some sociodemographic and clinical variables are associated with comorbid anxiety in MA use patients during withdrawal.