[Interrelationship among factors associated with drinking behaviors in dental students]

We analyzed the Kurihama Alcoholism Screening Test (KAST), the Adolescent Alcohol Involvement Scale (AAIS), the Fagerstroem Tolerance Questionnaire (FTQ), the Tokyo University ALDH2-Phenotype Screening Test (TAST), results of ethanol patch tests, the presence or absence of a smoking habit, and gender by "Hayashi's quantification theory, type II" in 415 senior students (232 males and 183 females) of a dental college between 2000 and 2003, and evaluated their relationships. When drinking education is given to dental students, both the prevention of acute alcohol intoxication by chugging and the prevention of alcohol dependence in students with drinking behavior suggesting this tendency are necessary. For acute alcohol intoxication, attention can be aroused in students with positive ethanol patch tests. However, there is no definite instruction method for the prevention of alcohol dependence. Therefore, we analyzed the relationships among drinking, smoking, and constitution based on data obtained during the 4 years when the above 3 types of surveys were performed. Plotting of the results of analysis showed that the students can be classified by the ethanol patch test and TAST into those with "alcohol-sensitive" constitution and those with "alcohol-tolerant" constitution. Most problem drinkers were "alcohol-tolerant". KAST showed plotting along the constitution axis from "normal drinking group" to "problem drinking borderline group" but a change in the angle to an L shape at the transfer point from "problem drinking borderline group" to "problem drinking group", showing more serious states along the smoking axis. These results suggest that drinking behavior is first regulated by alcohol- sensitive or alcohol-tolerate constitution, and alcohol-tolerate students with a smoking habit have alcohol dependence tendency, and tend to show serious problem drinking. Improvement in the drinking habit is necessary in alcohol-tolerate students with a smoking habit so that they will not develop alcohol dependence.