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    Concurrent disorders

    精神障碍与物质使用障碍共病

    Concept
    Also called
    Co-occurring disorders, Dual diagnosis

    A term used by Canadian health organizations for having both a mental health problem and a substance use problem. It covers any combination of the two, such as an anxiety disorder with problematic alcohol use.[1][2]

    One circle is mental health problems, the other substance use problems; the overlap, where a person has both, is what Canadian bodies call concurrent disorders. Select a region for examples. Circle size does not reflect how many people fall in each.

    Names for the same idea

    Canada (CAMH, CCSA)
    concurrent disorders
    United States (SAMHSA)
    co-occurring disorders
    Research reviews
    dual diagnosis, comorbidity

    This is not a self-test. Whether someone has concurrent disorders is for a professional to assess, often through several evaluations over time.

    How big is the overlap? US adults (NESARC-III survey)

    Adults with a psychiatric disorder 26%
    Adults with a substance use disorder 37%

    Bars show the share who also had the other kind of disorder. The people with both are the same group in each bar; the shares differ because fewer adults had a substance use disorder than a psychiatric disorder. Figures as reported in Bahji's (2024) review.

    Schematic of how mental health and substance use problems overlap, the names used for the overlap, and how large it was in a US national survey. This is not a self-test. Point at or tap parts of the figure for details
    Schematic of how mental health and substance use problems overlap, the names used for the overlap, and how large it was in a US national survey. This is not a self-test. Save as image (PNG)

    Key points

    • Canadian bodies such as CAMH and CCSA say concurrent disorders; the US agency SAMHSA says co-occurring disorders; reviews also use dual diagnosis and comorbidity.[1][2][3][4]
    • It is not one diagnosis. Schizophrenia with cannabis use disorder and depression with addiction to sleeping pills both count, and no symptom is common to all combinations.[1][3]
    • More than half of people seeking help for addiction also have a mental illness, CCSA reported in 2010.[2] SAMHSA estimates that 21.2 million US adults had both in 2024.[3]
    • The link runs both ways: a mental health problem raises the risk of addiction, and substance use can worsen mental health. CAMH says integrated treatment, addressing both at once, works best.[1]

    An example

    Lin drinks more on nights when worry keeps him awake, and an online article makes him wonder whether he has concurrent disorders. That is for a professional to assess, sometimes over several visits. He can tell his doctor about both the drinking and the worry so the two are assessed together.

    Misreadings and limits

    Having both does not mean one caused the other; the two can exist independently.[4] Substance use can itself bring on mood or anxiety symptoms, for example during alcohol withdrawal, so an accurate diagnosis often takes several assessments over time.[4]

    Sources

    1. 1 Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (2026). Concurrent disorders. CAMH (revised 2026). View source
    2. 2 Canadian Centre on Substance Abuse (2010). Substance abuse in Canada: Concurrent disorders. Highlights. Canadian Centre on Substance Abuse (now the Canadian Centre on Substance Use and Addiction), April 2010. View source
    3. 3 Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (2025). Co-occurring disorders and other health conditions. SAMHSA (last updated December 22, 2025). View source
    4. 4 Bahji, A. (2024). Navigating the complex intersection of substance use and psychiatric disorders: A comprehensive review. Journal of Clinical Medicine, 13(4), 999. doi:10.3390/jcm13040999

    Last checked against sources: October 26, 2026