ECM – Scuola Medica Ospedaliera – Dual pathology: phenomenology, treatment and prevention

“Dual Pathology” is the lexical formulation used to define a series of psychopathological manifestations determined by relational, environmental, and neurofunctional factors that interact to give rise to substance and non-substance addiction behaviors.

Considering all dependencies, both behavioral and non-behavioral, as mental illnesses has recently led to the development of more effective therapeutic and prevention interventions, as well as public health protection policies, compared to the past.

However, there is still progress to be made toward the definitive overcoming of the stigma that has always characterized addictions, hindering their full recognition as a psychopathological phenomenon.

The course offers:

• A reconstruction of the historical and cultural background within which the nosographic classification of psychopathological phenomena related to the so-called “dual pathology” occurred;
• An overview of the integrated treatment of Substance Use Disorders (SUD), from hospitalization in specialized departments to the definition and implementation of a structured therapeutic plan;
• The evolution of research in psychopathology concerning craving in patients with SUD, with or without dual pathology;
• A study on the coexistence of depression and eating disorders, understood as “non-substance-related addictions”;
• The presentation of preliminary results from a primary and secondary prevention intervention on social media addiction carried out with adolescents and young adults in the Lazio region, along with various prevention projects conducted in recent years in secondary schools.