Requests for medications during chemical dependency rehabilitation as a predictor of relapse

This study tested an aspect of the low-frustration-tolerance hypothesis by investigating the relationship between nonprescription medication requests by chemical-dependency patients, while in treatment, and their relapse rate. Subjects were 200 adult, chemically dependent patients admitted to a 28-day inpatient treatment program. The number of requests for nonprescription medications for subjective and objective symptoms were recorded for all patients during the course of their treatment, and these patients were followed for 1 year after treatment to determine if they had remained abstinent. Results were consistent with the predictions of the low-frustration-tolerance hypothesis. Patients who requested more medications for subjective symptoms during treatment were less likely to remain abstinent for 1 year after treatment.