Injury Risk Highest Among Binge Drinkers

Binge drinkers have a higher risk of alcohol-related injury than chronic, heavy drinkers, the Health Behavior News Service reported Feb. 22.

Binge-drinking women who otherwise drink in moderation had seven times the risk of injury as nondrinkers, while binge-drinking men increased their injury risk sixfold.

“It’s not only the amount of alcohol consumed that shapes the risk for injury, but also the usual consumption pattern,” said study author Gerhard Gmel of the Swiss Institute for the Prevention of Alcohol and Drug Problems. “At highest risk are those who usually consume moderately but sometimes binge drink. This is true for both sexes.”

The study was based on records from 8,736 people admitted to hospital emergency departments; researchers examined the relationship of injuries to average weekly alcohol consumption, binge-drinking episodes, and the amount of alcohol consumed prior to admission.

Gmel warned against prevention that focuses only on chronic drinkers, saying that many binge drinkers will be missed.

The research appears in the March 2006 issue of the journal Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research. From; Join Together Online

• See also;
• Abstinence Solves Thinking Problems
• Adolescents have deficits in frontal brain activation
• Brain Damage & Cirrhosis

Experiences of alcohol dependence: a qualitative study

INTRODUCTION AND AIMS OF THE STUDY:

Despite the increasing incidence of alcohol misuse and the costs it incurs, British society continues to hold equivocal and ambiguous attitudes towards drinking, and understanding of the nature of alcohol dependence and related issues is limited.

This qualitative study aimed to investigate the experiences of individuals with alcohol dependence to enhance understanding of the illness, identify key issues and common themes and provide insight into the experiences of the participants during their alcohol dependent period and recovery.

METHOD:

A qualitative approach, using narrative method, was used. Eight participants, all members of Alcoholics Anonymous (AA), were interviewed by the researchers. Using a grounded theory approach and content analysis, the in-depth narratives of the eight participants were systematically analysed.

RESULTS:

While participants continued to deny the existence of a problem to those around them, their behaviours indicated that they were aware of the problem but were afraid to admit it openly through fear of other people’s reactions.

Participants generally regarded GP’s as helpful but other health professionals less so, especially nurses and Accident and Emergency staff.

Participants considered that the success of treatment depended on their own motivation and willingness to engage in radical behaviour change.

They considered that reaching this stage represented a turning point in their illness. The point at which this stage was reached appeared to be different for each participant.

CONCLUSIONS:

This systematic analysis of a small sample of alcohol dependent individuals gives insight into their experiences during alcohol dependency and the journey to recovery.

The findings suggest that denial of the problem to the outside world occurs simultaneously with individuals being aware of their problem.

Participants felt the illness carries a stigma and their negative experiences of health professionals other than GP’s suggests that nurses and other health workers need to revise their understanding of alcohol dependence and their approach to it.

AA was a significant factor in recovery for these participants.

Research report; J Fam Health Care. 2007;17(6):211-4. Experiences of alcohol dependence: a qualitative study. Dyson J.

See also;

• BriefTSF is designed to help breakdown denial
• Twelve-Step Programs as an Adjunct to Psychotherapy and Psychopharmacology

Mechanisms of behavior change in alcoholics anonymous: does Alcoholics Anonymous lead to better alcohol use outcomes by reducing depression symptoms?

Rationale  Indices of negative affect, such as depression, have been implicated in stress-induced pathways to alcohol relapse. Empirically supported continuing care resources, such as Alcoholics Anonymous (AA), emphasize reducing negative affect to reduce relapse risk, but little research has been conducted to examine putative affective mechanisms of AA’s effects.

Methods  Using lagged, controlled, hierarchical linear modelling and meditational analyses this study investigated whether AA participation mobilized changes in depression symptoms and whether such changes explained subsequent reductions in alcohol use. Alcohol-dependent adults (n = 1706), receiving treatment as part of a clinical trial, were assessed at intake, 3, 6, 9, 12 and 15 months.

Results  Findings revealed elevated levels of depression compared to the general population, which decreased during treatment and then remained stable over follow-up. Greater AA attendance was associated with better subsequent alcohol use outcomes and decreased depression. Greater depression was associated with heavier and more frequent drinking. Lagged mediation analyses revealed that the effects of AA on alcohol use was mediated partially by reductions in depression symptoms. However, this salutary effect on depression itself appeared to be explained by AA’s proximal effect on reducing concurrent drinking.

Conclusions  AA attendance was associated both concurrently and predictively with improved alcohol outcomes. Although AA attendance was associated additionally with subsequent improvements in depression, it did not predict such improvements over and above concurrent alcohol use. AA appears to lead both to improvements in alcohol use and psychological and emotional wellbeing which, in turn, may reinforce further abstinence and recovery-related change.

Research; John F. Kelly, Robert L. Stout, Molly Magill, J. Scott Tonigan & Maria E. Pagano, Addiction, Volume 105 Issue 4, Pages 626 – 636

• See also
• Disturbing Denial
• Strategies for Dealing With Denial
• Addiction & Recovery Books
• The Dual Disorders Recovery Book
• Acceptance and Surrender

Cost-Effectiveness of Home Visits in the Outpatient Treatment of Patients with Alcohol Dependence

The purpose of this study was to compare the cost-effectiveness of conventional outpatient treatment for alcoholic patients (CT) with this same conventional treatment plus home visits (HV), a new proposal for intervention within the Brazilian outpatient treatment system.

A cost-effectiveness evaluation alongside a 12-week randomized clinical trial was performed. We identified the resources utilized by each intervention, as well as the cost according to National Health System (SUS), Brazilian Medical Association (AMB) tables of fees, and others based on 2005 data. The incremental cost-effectiveness ratio (ICER) was estimated as the main outcome measure – abstinent cases at the end of treatment.

• There were 51.8% abstinent cases for HV and 43.1% for CT, a clinically relevant finding.
• Other outcome measures, such as quality of life, also showed significant improvements that favored HV.

The baseline scenario presented an ICER of USD 1,852. Sensitivity analysis showed an ICER of USD 689 (scenario favoring HV) and USD 2,334 (scenario favoring CT).

The HV treatment was found to be cost-effective according to the WHO Commission on Macroeconomics and Health.

Research; Edilaine Moraesa, Geraldo M. Camposa, Neliana B. Figliea, Ronaldo Laranjeiraa, Marcos B. Ferrazb. Eur Addict Res 2010;16:69-77 (DOI: 10.1159/000268107)

• See also
• Psychology Books
• 12 Steps and Post Traumatic Stress
• AA & NA Work for Teens Too
• Stools and Bottles
• Brief-TSF can assist patients cease alcohol consumption.

Lifetime exposure to potentially traumatic events in a sample of alcoholic patients in Poland.

Recent studies show a high prevalence of traumatic events in samples of patients with a substance use disorder.

In the present study, the lifetime exposure to potentially traumatic events (PTE’s) was estimated in a sample of 458 patients recruited at 17 randomly chosen alcohol-dependence treatment units in the public healthcare sector in Poland.

• Eighty percent of the patients reported a history of at least one potentially traumatic event.
• Sixty percent of them reported experiencing more than one probable trauma.
• However, only the patients who experienced physical assault reported worse clinical severity in posttraumatic stress (PTSD) and alcohol-use related symptomatology.

The findings confirm the importance of trauma assessment in alcohol-dependent patients and the inclusion of trauma-related issues in the treatment of alcohol dependence.

Research report; Lifetime exposure to potentially traumatic events in a sample of alcohol-dependent patients in Poland. Dragan M, Lis-Turlejska M. J Traum Stress 2007; 20(6): 1041-51.

See also;

• Brief-TSF is designed to address these issues.
• Strategies for Dealing With Denial

Seeking Safety: A Treatment Manual for PTSD and Substance Abuse by Lisa M. Najavits Read more about this title…