Citation

Staudt A, Freyer-Adam J, John U, Meyer C, Baumann S. Alcohol Clin. Exp. Res. 2020; ePub(ePub): ePub.

Affiliation

Institute and Policlinic for Occupational and Social Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Technische Universität Dresden, Dresden, Germany.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2020, John Wiley and Sons)

DOI

10.1111/acer.14340

PMID

32311098

Abstract

BACKGROUND: In combination with systematic routine screening, brief alcohol interventions have the potential to promote population health. Little is known on the optimal screening interval. Therefore, this study pursued two research questions: (1) How stable are screening results for at-risk drinking over 12 months? (2) Can the transition from low-risk to at-risk drinking be predicted by gender, age, school education, employment or past week alcohol use? METHODS: A sample of 831 adults (55% female; mean age = 30.8 years) from the general population was assessed four times over 12 months. The Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test - Consumption was used to screen for at-risk drinking each time. Participants were categorized either as low-risk or at-risk drinkers at baseline, 3, 6 and 12 months later. Stable and instable risk status trajectories were analyzed descriptively and graphically. Transitioning from low-risk drinking at baseline to at-risk drinking at any follow-up was predicted using a logistic regression model.

RESULTS: Consistent screening results over time were observed in 509 participants (61%). Of all baseline low-risk drinkers, 113 (21%) received a positive screening result in one or more follow-up assessments. Females (vs. males; OR = 1.66; 95% CI = 1.04; 2.64), 18-29 year olds (vs. 30-45 year olds; OR = 2.30; 95% CI = 1.26; 4.20) and those reporting two or more drinking days (vs. less than two; OR = 3.11; 95% CI = 1.93; 5.01) and heavy episodic drinking (vs. none; OR = 2.35; 95% CI = 1.06; 5.20) in the week prior to the baseline assessment had increased odds for a transition to at-risk drinking.

CONCLUSIONS: Our findings suggest that the widely used time frame of one year may be ambiguous regarding the screening for at-risk alcohol use although generalizability may be limited due to higher-educated people being over-represented in our sample.

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Language: en

Keywords

AUDIT-C; at-risk drinking; drinking patterns; public health; trajectories