The Identification of Low-risk Gambling Limits for Specific Gambling Activities.

An emerging literature has identified optimal low-risk gambling limits in an effort to reduce gambling-related harm. Concerns have, however, been raised about the construction of aggregate low-risk limits that are applied to all gambling activities and there is support from gambling experts and the general public in Australia for the identification of low-risk limits for specific gambling activities. The study's aim was to identify and evaluate a set of empirically-based activity-specific limits (gambling frequency, gambling expenditure, gambling expenditure as a proportion of gross personal income, session expenditure, session duration) in a secondary analysis of Social and Economic Impact Studies of Gambling in Tasmania and the 2014 Survey on Gambling, Health and Wellbeing in the ACT. Balancing sensitivity and specificity, limits were identified for all gambling activities: EGMs (10 times per year, AUD$300/year, 0.63-1.04% of personal income, AUD$35 per session, 40 min/session), horse/dog racing (0.55% of personal income), instant scratch tickets (AUD$45/year), lotteries (0.45% of personal income), keno (4-13 times/year, AUD$45-$160/year), casino table games (AUD$345/year, 0.36-0.76% of personal income), bingo (AUD$150/year, 0.49% of personal income, AUD$17/session, 90 min/session), and sports/other event betting (14 times/year, AUD$400/year, 0.55-0.86% of personal income). These limits were exceeded by one-quarter to one-half of gamblers on these specific activities and were generally good predictors of gambling-related harm in subgroups of gamblers participating in these gambling activities and in the overall gambling sample. The limits provide gamblers, regulators, prevention workers, and researchers with simple rules of thumb in prevention efforts to reduce gambling-related harm in specific contexts.

Harms from a partner's drinking: an international study on adverse effects and reduced quality of life for women.

BACKGROUND: Partners of heavy drinking individuals can be detrimentally affected as a result of their partner's drinking. OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to identify the proportion of heterosexual intimate partner relationships with a heavy drinking male that resulted in reported alcohol-related harm and to investigate the impact of this on well-being in 9 countries. METHODS: This study used survey data from the Gender and Alcohol's Harm to Others (GENAHTO) Project on Alcohol's Harm to Others in 9 countries (10,613 female respondents, 7,091 with intimate live-in partners). Respondents were asked if their partners drinking had negatively affected them as well as questions on depression, anxiety, and satisfaction with life. RESULTS: The proportion of partnered respondents that reported having a harmful heavy drinking partner varied across countries, from 4% in Nigeria and the US to 33% in Vietnam. The most consistent correlate of experiencing harm was being oneself a heavy episodic drinker, most likely as a proxy measure for the acceptability of alcohol consumption in social circles. Women with a harmful heavy drinking partner reported significantly lower mean satisfaction with life than those with a partner that did not drink heavily. CONCLUSIONS: Harms to women from heavy drinking intimate partners appear across a range of subgroups and impact on a wide range of women, at least demographically speaking. Women living with a heavy drinking spouse experience higher levels of anxiety and depression symptoms and lower satisfaction with life.

The tangible common denominator of substance use disorders: a reply to commentaries to Rehm et al. (2013a).

In response to our suggestion to define substance use disorders via 'heavy use over time', theoretical and conceptual issues, measurement problems and implications for stigma and clinical practice were raised. With respect to theoretical and conceptual issues, no other criterion has been shown, which would improve the definition. Moreover, heavy use over time is shown to be highly correlated with number of criteria in current DSM-5. Measurement of heavy use over time is simple and while there will be some underestimation or misrepresentation of actual levels in clinical practice, this is not different from the status quo and measurement of current criteria. As regards to stigma, research has shown that a truly dimensional concept can help reduce stigma. In conclusion, 'heavy use over time' as a tangible common denominator should be seriously considered as definition for substance use disorder.

Defining substance use disorders: do we really need more than heavy use?

AIMS: The aim of the study was to explore whether the concept of heavy substance use over time can be used as definition of substance use disorder. METHODS: Narrative review. RESULTS: Heavy use over time clearly underlies the neurobiological changes associated with current thinking of substance use disorders. In addition, there is evidence that heavy use over time can explain the majority of social problems and of burden of disease (morbidity and mortality). A definition of substance use disorders via heavy use over time would avoid some of the problems of current conceptualizations, for instance the cultural specificity of concepts such as loss of control. Finally, stressing the continuum of use may avoid the high level of stigmatization currently associated with substance use disorders. CONCLUSION: 'Heavy substance use over time' seems to be a definition of substance use disorders in line with results of basic research and epidemiology. Additionally, it reduces stigmatization. This approach should thus be further explored.

Differences in drug consumption, comorbidity and health service use of opioid addicts across six European urban regions (TREAT-project).

OBJECTIVES: This comparative study investigated consumption patterns, comorbidity and treatment utilization of opioid addicts in six European cities (Athens, Essen, London, Padua, Stockholm, Zurich). SUBJECTS AND METHODS: Data were collected by structured face-to-face interviews. The representative sample comprises 599 addicts (100 patients per centre, 99 in London) at the start of a treatment episode. RESULTS: Patients were dependent on opioids for about 10 years. Regional differences were significant regarding the patients' drug consumption pattern and their method of heroin administration (up to a fourth of the patients in Essen, London and Zurich usually smoke heroin). Concomitant use of benzodiazepines, cannabis and alcohol was common in all regions with the German and English samples showing the highest level of polydrug use. The prevalence of major depression was high in all regions (50%). Stockholm and London patients worry most about their physical health. Differences in the amount of needle sharing and especially in the use of public health service were prominent between the sites. Opioid addiction was a long-term disorder associated with a high burden of comorbidity and social problems in all cities. CONCLUSION: The results of the study show significant interregional differences of opioid addicts which might require different treatment strategies in European countries to handle the problem.

The more you drink, the harder you fall: a systematic review and meta-analysis of how acute alcohol consumption and injury or collision risk increase together.

Alcohol consumption causes injury in a dose-response manner. The most common mode of sustaining an alcohol-attributable injury is from a single occasion of acute alcohol consumption, but much of the injury literature employs usual consumption habits to assess risk instead. An analysis of the acute dose-response relationship between alcohol and injury is warranted to generate single occasion- and dose-specific relative risks. A systematic literature review and meta-analysis was conducted to fill this gap. Linear and best-fit first-order model were used to model the data. Usual tests of heterogeneity and publication bias were run. Separate meta-analyses were run for motor vehicle and non-motor vehicle injuries, as well as case-control and case-crossover studies. The risk of injury increases non-linearly with increasing alcohol consumption. For motor vehicle accidents, the odds ratio increases by 1.24 (95% CI: 1.18-1.31) per 10-g in pure alcohol increase to 52.0 (95% CI: 34.50-78.28) at 120 g. For non-motor vehicle injury, the OR increases by 1.30 (95% CI: 1.26-1.34) to an OR of 24.2 at 140 g (95% CI: 16.2-36.2). Case-crossover studies of non-MVA injury result in overall higher risks than case-control studies and the per-drink increase in odds of injury was highest for intentional injury, at 1.38 (95% CI: 1.22-1.55). Efforts to reduce drinking both on an individual level and a population level are important. No level of consumption is safe when driving and less than 2 drinks per occasion should be encouraged to reduce the risk of injury.

Clinical assessment compared with breathalyser readings in the emergency room: concordance of ICD-10 Y90 and Y91 codes.

OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this study was to analyse the validity of clinical assessment of alcohol intoxication (ICD-10 Y91) compared with estimated blood alcohol concentration (BAC) using a breath analyser (ICD-10 Y90) among patients in the emergency room (ER). METHODS: Representative samples of ER patients reporting within six hours of injury (n = 4798) from 12 countries comprising the WHO Collaborative Study on Alcohol and Injuries were breath analysed and assessed blindly for alcohol intoxication at the time of ER admission. Data were analysed using Kendall's Tau-B to measure concordance of clinical assessment and BAC, and meta analysis to determine heterogeneity of effect size. RESULTS: Raw agreement between the two measures was 86% (Tau-B 0.68), but was lower among those reporting drinking in the six hours prior to injury (raw agreement 39%; Tau-B 0.32). No difference was found by gender or for timing of clinical assessment in relation to breath analysis. Patients positive for tolerance or dependence were more likely to be assessed as intoxicated at low levels of BAC. Estimates were homogeneous across countries only for females and for those negative for alcohol dependence. CONCLUSIONS: Clinical assessment is moderately concordant with level of BAC, but in those patients who have actually been drinking within the last six hours the concordance was much less, possibly because, in part, of a tendency on the part of clinicians to assign some level of intoxication to anyone who appeared to have been drinking.

Contribution of drinking patterns to differences in rates of alcohol related problems between three urban populations.

OBJECTIVES: To examine, on empirical data, whether drinking patterns, in addition to overall alcohol consumption, contribute to differences in rates of alcohol related problems between populations. DESIGN: Cross sectional survey. SETTINGS: One Russian, one Polish, and one Czech city. PARTICIPANTS: 1118 men and 1125 women randomly selected from population registers. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Problem drinking; negative social consequences of drinking; alcohol consumption and drinking pattern. RESULTS: Rates of problem drinking and of negative consequences of drinking were much higher in Russian men (35% and 18%, respectively) than in Czechs (19% and 10%) or Poles (14% and 8%). This contrasts with substantially lower mean annual intake of alcohol reported by Russian men (4.6 litres) than by Czech men (8.5 litres), and with low mean drinking frequency in Russia (67 drinking sessions per year, compared with 179 sessions among Czech men). However, Russians consumed the highest dose of alcohol per drinking session (means 71 g in Russians, 46 g in Czechs, and 45 g in Poles), and had the highest prevalence of binge drinking. In women, the levels of alcohol related problems and of drinking were low in all countries. In ecological and individual level analyses, indicators of binge drinking explained a substantial part of differences in rates of problem drinking and negative consequences of drinking between the three countries. CONCLUSIONS: These empirical data confirm high levels of alcohol related problems in Russia despite low volume of drinking. The binge drinking pattern partly explains this paradoxical finding. Overall alcohol consumption does not suffice as an estimate of alcohol related problems at the population level.

Steps towards constructing a global comparative risk analysis for alcohol consumption: determining indicators and empirical weights for patterns of drinking, deciding about theoretical minimum, and dealing with different consequences.

In order to conduct a comparative risk analysis for alcohol within the Global Burden of Disease Study (GBD 2000), several questions had to be answered. (1) What are the appropriate dimensions for alcohol consumption and how can they be categorized? The average volume of alcohol and patterns of drinking were selected as dimensions. Both dimensions could be looked upon as continuous but were categorized for practical purposes. The average volume of drinking was categorized into the following categories: abstention; drinking 1 (> 0-19.99 g pure alcohol daily for females, > 0-39.99 g for males); drinking 2 (20-39.99 g for females, 40-59.99 g for males), and drinking 3 (> or =40 g for females, > or =60 g for males). Patterns of drinking were categorized into four levels of detrimental impact based on an optimal scaling analysis of key informant ratings. (2) What is the theoretical minimum for both dimensions? A pattern of regular light drinking (at most 1 drink every day) was selected as theoretical minimum for established market economies for all people above age 45. For all other regions and age groups, the theoretical minimum was set to zero. Potential problems and uncertainties with this selection are discussed. (3) What are the health outcomes for alcohol and how do they relate to the dimensions? Overall, more than 60 disease conditions were identified as being related to alcohol consumption. Most chronic conditions seem to be related to volume only (exceptions are coronary heart disease and ischemic stroke), and most acute conditions seem to be related to volume and patterns. In addition, using methodology based on aggregate data, patterns were relevant for attributing harms for men but not women.

Average volume of alcohol consumption, drinking patterns and related burden of mortality in young people in established market economies of Europe.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the burden of mortality in young people (age 15-29) in established market economies in Europe in 1999, which is attributable to alcohol consumption. Two dimensions of alcohol consumption were considered: average volume of consumption, and patterns of drinking. METHODS: Mortality data were obtained from the WHO EIP data bank, average volume data from the WHO global databank on alcohol, pattern of drinking data from a questionnaire sent out to experts, from the published literature and from the WHO global databank. Methods are explained and discussed in detail in two other contributions to this volume. RESULTS: More than 8,000 deaths of people aged 15-29 in Europe in 1999 were attributable to alcohol. Young males show a higher proportion of alcohol-attributable deaths (12.8%) than females (8.3%). Both average volume and patterns of drinking contribute to alcohol-related death. CONCLUSIONS: Alcohol-related deaths constitute a considerable burden in young people in Europe.

Intoxication and bad behaviour: understanding cultural differences in the link.

Research developments since the appearance of MacAndrew and Edgerton's landmark volume, Drunken Comportment (1969), are summarized. The challenge of moving beyond the book is to understand what lies behind cultural variations in drunken comportment. Four specific factors in variations in drunken comportment are discussed. (1) A common contrast is between "wet" societies, where drinking is banalized everyday, and "dry" societies, where alcohol is set apart as a special commodity. Problems with this contrast are discussed, and the need for cross-cultural studies comparing expectancies from intoxication. (2) There is a need to study variations in the definition of intoxication as a "time out" state. In some societies, intoxication is likened to possession by spirits; a rationalistic version of this can be found in Canadian court decisions viewing extreme intoxication as potentially "akin to automatism". (3) If bad behaviour is a foreseeable consequence of drinking, why do some societies nevertheless not hold the drinker responsible'? In Anglo-American and similar societies, drunkenness has some excuse value, but it is not a very good excuse. Compromises like this seem to be found also in other cultures. (4) Pseudointoxication is fairly widespread, and seems to mark social situations where alcohol has enhanced excuse value. It appears to be a stratagem of the weaker side across cultural boundaries, and of the young where age-grading favours older groups. Concerning the possibility of cultural changes in drunken comportment, it is argued that there are historical examples, but such a shift requires a substantial social change.

Trends in public opinion on alcohol policy measures: Ontario 1989-1998.

OBJECTIVE: This article presents trend data concerning public opinion on alcohol policy in the Canadian province of Ontario over a 10-year period (1989-98), highlights the currently debated issue of private venues for retail alcohol sales and assesses correspondence between public opinion and actual and proposed policy decisions. METHOD: Selected policy-related items from nine probability surveys on representative samples of male and female Ontario adults (range of unweighted n 's: 953 to 1,947) were analyzed by means of logistic regression. RESULTS: We found strong support for the status quo for a number of items, including beer and liquor store hours, corner store sales and taxes. Across all years, less than 6% of the total sample wanted to lower the legal drinking age. Over time, a linear trend showed a gradual but not entirely consistent development of attitudes among the Ontario public, favoring relaxation of some controls. However, contrary to this trend, disapproval of retail sales in corner stores increased significantly from 1992 to 1996. Demographic breakdown shows that relaxation of controls is most favored by those who report consumption of five or more drinks per occasion at least weekly over the past 12 months, and most strongly opposed by women and nondrinkers. Of those who seldom or never consume five or more drinks per occasion, the majority express satisfaction with the status quo. CONCLUSIONS: These data call into question the suitability of changes in alcohol policy that would diminish controls. It is of particular interest that there seems to be little public support for privatization proposals in the province. Public opinion against comer store sales of alcoholic beverages increased over time.

Towards a global alcohol policy: alcohol, public health and the role of WHO.

In 1983 the World Health Assembly declared alcohol-related problems to be among the world's major health concerns. Since then, alcohol consumption has risen in developing countries, where it takes a heavy toll. Alcohol-related problems are at epidemic levels in the successor states of the Soviet Union and are responsible for 3.5% of disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) lost globally. Substantial evidence exists of the relationship between the levels and patterns of alcohol consumption on the one hand and the incidence of alcohol-related problems on the other. Over the past 20 years, research has demonstrated the effectiveness of public policies involving, for example, taxation and restrictions on alcohol availability, in reducing alcohol-related problems. In the wake of rapid economic globalization, many of these policies at national and subnational levels have been eroded, often with the support of international financial and development organizations. Development agencies and international trade agreements have treated alcohol as a normal commodity, overlooking the adverse consequences of its consumption on productivity and health. WHO is in a strong position to take the lead in developing a global alcohol policy aimed at reducing alcohol-related problems, providing scientific and statistical support, capacity-building, disseminating effective strategies and collaborating with other international organizations. Such leadership can play a significant part in diminishing the health and social problems associated with alcohol use.

Typologies of the cultural position of drinking.

OBJECTIVE: Typologies of the cultural position of drinking from the social science literature are reviewed. METHOD: The article reviews significant studies and literature on the topic. RESULTS: Starting in the 1940s, two research traditions considered variations in the cultural position of drinking as explanations of rates of drinking problems. A "holocultural" tradition coded and analyzed ethnographic data on tribal and village societies, starting in the 1940s, with each study identifying a different social dimension as crucial. A "sociocultural" tradition distinguished abstinent cultures from prescriptive cultures, in which drinking was integrated with daily life, and expected, but drunkenness was prohibited. These types were implicitly contrasted with American drinking, which was variously characterized. Other dimensional and typological approaches in the literature are considered, including a little-known Jellinek typology. Problems with the widely used distinction between "wetter" and "drier" (or "temperance") cultures are discussed. CONCLUSIONS: Four ideal types of the cultural position of drinking can be readily distinguished: abstinent societies, constrained ritual drinking, banalized drinking and fiesta drunkenness. A large residual category remains, however, and a dimensional approach to typology building may be more fruitful. Two basic dimensions are proposed--regularity of drinking and extent of drunkenness--and further dimensions are described that may be added to fit the requirements of the particular study.

Towards agreement on ways to measure and report drinking patterns and alcohol-related problems in adult general population surveys: the Skarpö conference overview.

A thematic conference of the Kettil Bruun Society (KBS) for Social and Epidemiological Research on Alcohol was held in Skarpö, near Stockholm, on April 3-7, 2000. The goals of the meeting were to develop consensus sets of questionnaire items for measuring alcohol consumption and social harm, to delineate statistical and practical concerns related to the aggregation of consumption and harm data and to identify summary measures to be used for descriptive purposes and in analyses of the association between alcohol intake and alcohol-related outcomes. The results of the conference discussions are summarized below, with emphasis on both areas where the conference yielded recommendations for measures and methods of aggregation for analysis, and on areas where consensus could not be obtained and/or where additional research is needed.

Dimensions of alcohol-related social and health consequences in survey research.

Dimensions of alcohol-related social and health consequences are approached from two different perspectives. First, classical approaches with factor analytic techniques are used to empirically determine the dimensionality of item batteries intended to measure harm. Second, a closer look is taken at theoretically underlying dimensions of social and health consequences and their association with alcohol consumption. Using as empirical material data from the US national survey of males aged 21-59 (N3) conducted in 1969, the following specific questions are discussed: (1) What are the underlying dimensions of alcohol-related social and health consequences? (2) How should the relation between alcohol consumption and consequences best be assessed (in terms of epidemiological traditions or social constructivist traditions)? (3) How can we best incorporate the time perspective into modeling the relationship between alcohol consumption and consequences? A first attempt is made to develop practical guidelines for future research on handling these problems.

Measuring drinking patterns: the experience of the last half century.

While there were earlier surveys of drinking behaviour, the modern tradition of these surveys dates back 50 years ago, and by the 1970s encompassed a number of countries. The paper reviews developments in the modern tradition of drinking surveys. One major tradition asks respondents about very recent drinking occasions, while the other asks the respondent to summarize the behavior over a longer period. While earlier analyses differentiated between frequency of drinking and quantity per occasion, this tradition was swamped by analyses in terms of an overall volume of drinking. Now, however, there is a renewed emphasis on patterns of drinking. Current developments in characterizing drinking patterns are summarized, with the conclusion that frequency of drinking at all, and frequency of heavier drinking occasions, are dimensions important both in terms of the social meaning of drinking and of the relation to potential consequences of drinking.