Association between Alcoholism Family History and Alcohol Screening Scores among Alcohol-dependent Patients

作者：Lee So Hyun; Lee Boung Chul; Kim Jee Wook; Yi Jung Seo; Choi Ihn Geun^*

来源：Clinical Psychopharmacology and Neuroscience, 2013, 11(2): 89-95.

DOI：10.9758/cpn.2013.11.2.89

• Alcohol use disorders
• Family history
• Cut down
• Annoyed
• Guilty
• Eye-opener test
• Alcohol Use Disorder Identification Test
• Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorder-fourth edition

Objective: Several tests can be used to screen for alcohol dependence (AD), a prevalent disease with a heterogeneous etiology. As some patients with AD have a strong familial tendency in this regard, a family history of alcohol use disorders can affect the outcomes of screening tests and diagnostic evaluations for AD. In this study, we evaluated associations between a family history of alcohol use disorders and evaluations using the Cut down, Annoyed, Guilty, Eye-opener (CAGE) test, Alcohol Use Disorder Identification Test (AUDIT), and Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders fourth edition (DSM-IV) diagnostic criteria among patients with AD. %26lt;br%26gt;Methods: We recruited 487 male patients with AD from eight hospitals in Korea. Patients were evaluated using the CAGE, AUDIT, and DSM-IV diagnostic criteria. Patients with and without family histories were compared in terms of these assessment tools. %26lt;br%26gt;Results: Drinking initiation, uncontrollable drinking, and problem drinking occurred earlier and CAGE %26quot;annoyed%26quot; scores were higher in patients with a family history. Alcohol problems before the age of 25 years, frequency of spontaneous or compulsive alcohol-seeking behavior, and frequencies of psychological dependence and guilt related to alcohol use were also higher. %26lt;br%26gt;Conclusion: Earlier drinking problems, higher scores on specific items of the CAGE, and AUDIT, and meeting more diagnostic criteria indicate more dependent, harmful drinking by patients with AD who have a family history of this condition. Clinicians should consider patients%26apos; family history of alcohol use disorders when screening for AD to identify the correct diagnosis and develop appropriate treatment plans for these patients.

• 出版日期2013-8