Co-occurring depression and alcohol-use disorders in South-East Asia: a narrative review
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World Health Organization. Regional Office for South-East Asia
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Depression and alcohol-use disorders frequently co-occur and the presence of one augments the adverseconsequences of the other. This article reviews and synthesizes the available literature on depression andalcohol-use disorders from the World Health Organization (WHO) South-East Asia Region, with respect toepidemiology, screening instruments, interventions and services, and policy. In common with other low- andmiddle-income settings, data from this region on co-occurring depression and alcohol-use disorders arescarce. The wide variations in language and cultural diversity within the countries of this region further makethe identification and management of people with co-occurring depression and alcohol-use disorders a majorchallenge. A range of interventions for individuals with the two disorders have been studied. However, mostof this work has been done in high-income countries, highlighting the need to explore the effectiveness andcost effectiveness of various pharmacological and non-pharmacological interventions in the WHO South-EastAsia Region. Much of this region comprises low-resource settings, with a dearth of trained personnel andresources. Flexible transdiagnostic approaches, delivered by community health workers and integrated intoprimary health care may be a pragmatic approach. Such services should form part of strengthened nationalresponses to alcohol-related public health problems across the region.
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