Prevalence of alcohol problems in general practice: An experience from southern Italy
| Autor: | Andrea Rambaldi, Lucia Ambrosone, Mario Rambaldi, Nicola Todisco, Christian Gluud |
|---|---|
| Předmět: |
Adult
Male Pediatrics medicine.medical_specialty Adolescent Urban Population Alcohol chemistry.chemical_compound Patient Education as Topic Epidemiology medicine Humans Mass Screening Aged Aged 80 and over Heavy drinking business.industry Incidence General Medicine Middle Aged Michigan Alcoholism Screening Test Confidence interval Alcoholism Cross-Sectional Studies chemistry Italy General practice Female business Family Practice Alcohol consumption Urban environment Demography |
| Zdroj: | Scopus-Elsevier |
| Popis: | The Michigan Alcoholism Screening Test (MAST) and the response to a question about heavy alcohol consumption were used to assess the prevalence of alcohol problems in consecutive patients (77 males and 46 females) consulting a general practitioner in an urban area in the South of Italy (Castellammare di Stabia). Alcohol problems, which were defined by a cut-off score of 5 on the MAST and/or by heavy alcohol consumption (corresponding to at least 60 g of cthanol daily for males and 36 g of ethanol daily for females for at least 2 years), were identified in 54 patients (43 9%: 95% confidence interval (Cl) 35.0-53.1%). 45 males (58.4%. 95% Cl 46.6-69.6%) and nine females (19.6%. 95% Cl 9.4-33.9%). The prevalence of MAST positive patients was 32.5% (95% Cl 24 4-41 6%) in the total patient sample. 45.5% (95% Cl 34.1-57.2%) among males and KJ.9% (95% Cl 3.6-23.6%) among females. The question about heavy alcohol consumption had a predictive negative value of 97.2% (95% Cl 90 2-99 7%) and a predictive positive value of 73 1 % (95% Cl 59 0-X4.4%) in relation to MAST positive patients. It is suggested that general practitioners should incorporate this question about heavy alcohol consumption as a screening question in order to detect alcohol problems and give advice regarding reduction of alcohol consumption. |
| Databáze: | OpenAIRE |
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