Typologies of illicit drug use in mid-adulthood a quasi-longitudinal latent class analysis in a community-based sample of twins.
To identify drug use typologies based on substances used and persistence of use over two time points, use a genetically informed design to explore twin concordance of and genetic influence on the use typologies and compare patterns of declineddiscontinued (desistant) and persistent drug use on drug use correlates. Latent class analysis was applied to data from a cross-sectional self-report survey on current and past drug use. Use characteristics, use disorder, and psychiatric problems were compared across classes. Computer-assisted telephone interview in respondents homes. A total of 3785 individual twins and siblings (1365 men, 2420 women M A comprehensive interview assessed prior to past year and past year use of cannabis, stimulants, cocainecrack, hallucinogens, opioids, sedatives, inhalants, dissociatives, and solvents age of first use opportunity to use peer drug use attention deficithyperactivity, conduct, antisocial personality, depressive, and substance use disorders and suicidality. A five-class solution emerged nolow use (50%), desistant cannabis use (23%), desistant party drug use (18%), persistent prescription drug misuse (4%), and persistent polydrug use (5%). Twin concordances were higher among monozygotic (k 0.30-0.35) than dizygotic pairs (same-sex k 0.19-0.20 opposite sex k 0.07), and biometric modeling suggested that the persistent polydrug use class, in particular, was highly heritable (a Unique patterns of declineddiscontinued (desistant) and persistent drug use are differentially heritable and differentially associated with risk factors, psychiatric symptoms, and substance use disorder outcomes.