Prevalence of problematic drinking among outpatients attending general hospitals in Tokyo

Although some studies about the prevalence of alcohol-related problems in general hospitals have been conducted in Japan, it may seem that some of Japanese physicians and surgeons appear to have less interest in alcohol-related problems. We investigated the prevalence of problematic drinking among outpatients visiting general hospitals in Tokyo, and examined factors associated with problematic drinking in such outpatients.

This study used a self-report questionnaire. Subjects (N = 1826, 814 were male) were recruited from all adult outpatients in January 2011 from seven general hospitals in the Tokyo metropolitan area. We used the third question of the Alcohol Use Disorder Identification Test (AUDIT) to screen for "heavy drinking", and the CAGE to screen for "suspected alcohol dependence".

The prevalences of "heavy drinking" and "suspected alcohol dependence" were 7.1% and 14.1%, respectively. Multivariate analyses revealed that being middle-aged and male were significantly associated with both "suspected alcohol dependence" and "heavy drinking". Consultations with the departments of internal medicine, surgery, or obstetrics and gynecology were significantly associated with subjects having "suspected alcohol dependence".

Screening problematic drinking in general hospitals is required for early detection and treatment of alcohol-related problems for outpatients, especially for men, visiting internal medicine or surgery departments and for women visiting obstetrics and gynecology department.