Prevalence and mortality of heavy drinkers in a general medical hospital unit

• Published in: Alcohol and alcoholism (Oxford) 2001-07, Vol.36 (4), p.335-338
• Main Authors: Jarque-López, A., González-Reimers, E., Rodríguez-Moreno, F., Santolaria-Fernández, F., López-Lirola, A., Ros-Vilamajo, R., Espinosa-Villarreal, J. G., Martínez-Riera, A.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Addictive behaviors; Adult; Adult and adolescent clinical studies; Age Distribution; Aged; Alcoholism; Alcoholism - mortality; Analysis. Health state; Biological and medical sciences; Epidemiology; Female; General aspects; Heavy drinking; Hospital Mortality; Hospitals; Humans; Male; Medical sciences; Middle Aged; Mortality; Patients; Prevalence; Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry; Psychopathology. Psychiatry; Public health. Hygiene; Public health. Hygiene-occupational medicine; Sex Characteristics; Spain; Spain - epidemiology
• ISSN: 0735-0414; 1464-3502; 1464-3502
• DOI: 10.1093/alcalc/36.4.335

This study was performed in order to analyse the prevalence, clinical characteristics and mortality of heavy drinkers among hospitalized patients during a 2-year period. Chronic excessive alcohol consumption (daily intake >80 g of ethanol for males and >40 g for females) was found in 278 of 2913 hospital admissions and was strongly associated with the male sex (90.69%). Heavy drinkers were significantly younger than other admissions (15 and 10 years for men and women, respectively), but showed similar mortality rates to other admissions, despite a much earlier age at death (19.5 years for men and 22 years for women). There was a trend towards higher mortality rates among severe alcoholic women than severe alcoholic men and non-alcoholic women. Liver cirrhosis was the entity most frequently observed in the heavy drinkers, and was significantly more prevalent in alcoholic women.