Alcohol Drinking Patterns and Contributing Factors among Medical Students, a Systematic Review

Background:The use of Alcohol has become an important public health concern with a variety of negative consequences, it is important to understand the variables that may be risk factors for this phenomenon. Further, university students represent a group of individuals who have unique drinking patterns and different risk factors and concerns related to problematic drinking than the population in general. Legal substances like alcohol accounts for the vast majority of negative medical, economic, and social impact. Although alcohol use occurs across many age groups, young adults aged 18–24 years show the highest rates of alcohol use and have the greatest percentage of problems drinkers (Kandel & Logan, 1984). Namibia is ranked fifth on the African continent in terms of annual alcohol consumption with the average Namibian consuming 9.62 liters of alcohol per year (WHO 2011). This review addresses problematic drinking and the variables associated with it for medical students. The purpose of this systematic review is to compare the perception and attitude of alcohol consumption among medical students and weigh the factors associated with drinking habits. Methods:A qualitative and quantitative systematic review of article from multiple search engines. Five articles were within the inclusion criteria thus appraised and reviewed for this paper. The common study method used was cross sectional, with varying sample sizes. Commonly, the use of self-assessment questionnaires and objective AUDIT C and CAGE score evaluation were used frequently between these articles. Results:The review showed that there are multiple factors that influence the use of alcohol among medical students. Personal factors such as a new found sense of independence, peer pressure, inability to handle academic stressors. Socio-economic factors include high tolerance of alcohol use in the communities and monthly expenses. It was also noted that the use of alcohol in medical students is higher than the average university student. A highlighted noted is that the use of alcohol is much higher among male than female medical students. Conclusion:Findings suggested that the perceptions of alcohol use is depended on multiple factors majority being academic perceived stress. It is also noted that continuation of these maladaptive coping mechanisms may lead to dysfunction in the future. The findings of systematic review are limited by the number of articles appraised and reliant on the information provided by the authors.

Alcohol Use in China: Unrecorded and Recorded Bai Jiu in Three Rural Regions

In China, approximately 70% of beverage alcohol is consumed in the form of spirits. An estimated 25% of all alcohol consumed is unrecorded, mostly spirits (bai jiu), produced outside regulatory systems in small neighborhood distilleries, mostly in rural areas. Unrecorded bai jiu drinkers are generally older, male, prefer higher-strength bai jiu, and drink daily and mostly at home. To explore possible regional differences, researchers used interview data from 2919 bai jiu drinkers in rural areas in Hebei, Anhui, and Hubei provinces in China. Results confirmed that patterns varied by province. The sample in Hubei preferred unrecorded bai jiu with a more stable preference to alcohol type, tended to drink less frequently, and reported experiencing less drinking pressure, suggesting lower-risk drinking patterns in this region. The Hebei and Anhui sample reported higher frequency and greater amount of alcohol consumption, were more likely to experience drinking pressure, indicating higher-risk patterns in alcohol use in these two regions. The results provide needed details about regional differences in unrecorded bai jiu drinking patterns that are not evident in aggregated data and suggest variations in drinking patterns that may reflect local geography, local values, traditions, and ethnic differences.

A systematic review of self-report measures used in epidemiological studies to assess alcohol consumption among older adults

Background There is a lack of standardization regarding how to assess and categorize alcohol intake in older adults. The aim of this study was to systematically review methods used in epidemiological studies to define drinking patterns and measure alcohol consumption among older adults. Methods A systematic search was conducted in the MEDLINE, PubMed, PsycINFO, EMBASE, and CINAHL databases for studies published from January 2009 to April 2021. Studies were included if they were observational studies with a quantitative design; the mean age of the participants was ≥ 65 years; questionnaires, screening tools, or diagnostic tools were used to define alcohol consumption; and alcohol consumption was self-reported. Results Of 492 studies considered, 105 were included. Among the 105 studies, we detected 19 different drinking patterns, and each drinking pattern had a wide range of definitions. The drinking patterns abstaining from alcohol, current drinking, and risk drinking had seven, 12 and 21 diverse definitions, respectively. The most used questionnaire and screening tools were the quantity-frequency questionnaire, with a recall period of 12 months, and the full and short versions of the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test, respectively. Conclusion No consensus was found regarding methods used to assess, define, and measure alcohol consumption in older adults. Identical assessments and definitions must be developed to make valid comparisons of alcohol consumption in older adults. We recommend that alcohol surveys for older adults define the following drinking patterns: lifetime abstainers, former drinkers, current drinkers, risk drinking, and heavy episodic drinking. Standardized and valid definitions of risk drinking, and heavy episodic drinking should be developed. The expanded quantity-frequency questionnaire including three questions focused on drinking frequency, drinking volume, and heavy episodic drinking, with a recall period of 12 months, could be used.

The Clinical Course of Alcohol Use Disorder Depicted by Digital Biomarkers

Aims: This study introduces new digital biomarkers to be used as precise, objective tools to measure and describe the clinical course of patients with alcohol use disorder (AUD).Methods: An algorithm is outlined for the calculation of a new digital biomarker, the recovery and exacerbation index (REI), which describes the current trend in a patient's clinical course of AUD. A threshold applied to the REI identifies the starting point and the length of an exacerbation event (EE). The disease patterns and periodicity are described by the number, length, and distance between EEs. The algorithms were tested on data from patients from previous clinical trials (n = 51) and clinical practice (n = 1,717).Results: Our study indicates that the digital biomarker-based description of the clinical course of AUD might be superior to the traditional self-reported relapse/remission concept and conventional biomarkers due to higher data quality (alcohol measured) and time resolution. We found that EEs and the REI introduce distinct tools to identify qualitative and quantitative differences in drinking patterns (drinks per drinking day, phosphatidyl ethanol levels, weekday and holiday patterns) and effect of treatment time.Conclusions: This study indicates that the disease state—level, trend and periodicity—can be mathematically described and visualized with digital biomarkers, thereby improving knowledge about the clinical course of AUD and enabling clinical decision-making and adaptive care. The algorithms provide a basis for machine-learning-driven research that might also be applied for other disorders where daily data are available from digital health systems.

Cross-sectional study on the characteristics of unrecorded alcohol consumption in nine newly independent states between 2013 and 2017

ObjectivesAs unrecorded alcohol use contributes to a substantial burden of disease, this study characterises this phenomenon in newly independent states (NIS) of the former Soviet Union with regard to the sources of unrecorded alcohol, and the proportion of unrecorded of total alcohol consumption. We also investigate associated sociodemographic characteristics and drinking patterns.DesignCross-sectional data on overall and unrecorded alcohol use in the past 7 days from WHO STEPwise Approach to NCD Risk Factor Surveillance (STEPS) surveys. Descriptive statistics were calculated at the country level, hierarchical logistic and linear regression models were used to investigate sociodemographic characteristics and drinking patterns associated with using unrecorded alcohol.SettingNine NIS (Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Kyrgyzstan, Republic of Moldova, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan) in the years 2013–2017.ParticipantsNationally representative samples including a total of 36 259 participants.ResultsA total of 6251 participants (19.7%; 95% CI 7.9% to 31.5%) reported alcohol consumption in the past 7 days, 2185 of which (35.1%; 95% CI 8.2% to 62.0%) reported unrecorded alcohol consumption with pronounced differences between countries. The population-weighted average proportion of unrecorded consumption in nine NIS was 8.7% (95% CI 5.9% to 12.4%). The most common type of unrecorded alcohol was home-made spirits, followed by home-made beer and wine. Older (45–69 vs 25–44 years) and unemployed (vs employed) participants had higher odds of using unrecorded alcohol. More nuanced sociodemographic differences were observed for specific types of unrecorded alcohol.ConclusionsThis contribution is the first to highlight both, prevalence and composition of unrecorded alcohol consumption in nine NIS. The observed proportions and sources of unrecorded alcohol are discussed in light of local challenges in policy implementation, especially in regard to the newly formed Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU), as some but not all NIS are in the EAEU.