Citation

Kratzer W, Blum P, Mason R, Schmitz M, Beckh K, Adler G, Novak P, Heimpel H. Leber Magen Darm 1998; 28(3): 115-121.

Copyright

(Copyright © 1998, Verlag Gerhard Witzstrock)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

Alcohol represents the most significant medicosocial problem facing Germany today. Quantification of alcohol-related costs to the public health system is usually based on insurance and accident statistics or on studies with addiction-related or psychiatric focus. Data regarding alcohol-related diseases in medical emergency admissions in Germany, however, have not been available. Using a specially developed assignment diagram, a total of 1 494 medical emergency patients were screened between June and December, 1995. 206 of these patients were included in the present study. Directly or indirectly alcohol-related diseases were found in 15.7% (n = 206; males 83%, females 17%) of all emergency admissions. According to ICD-10, 34.5% of the patients admitted suffered from psychical behavior disorders incl. suicide attempt, 8.3% from neurologic diseases incl. cerebrovascular diseases, 75.5% from cardiovascular diseases and 23.3% from gastroenterologic diseases incl. esophageal varices. Acute alcohol intoxication was found in 17.5% and 13.6% developed delirium tremens. The screening instrument, which differs from test methods already developed for use in addiction treatment programmes, detected alcohol-related disorders in 15.7% of all medical emergency admissions and in 24.4% of patients aged less than 65 years. A screening schema based on medical symptoms and findings for recognition of alcohol-related disorders could be easily integrated into routine work-up of medical emergency admissions. The introduction of routine measurement of alcohol concentration in exhalation could be useful.

Language: de

Keywords

Alcohol; alcohol abuse; Alcohol-related diseases; article; cardiovascular disease; cerebrovascular disease; digestive system disease; disease association; emergency treatment; human; internal medicine; major clinical study; Medical emergency patients; neurologic disease; public health; Public health system; screening; suicide attempt