Alcohol use and injury risk in Thailand: A case-crossover emergency department study

While injuries and alcohol contribute to a large proportion of the disease burden in Thailand, no well-designed underlying study has yet been published. This study aims to evaluate the relationship between acute alcohol consumption and injury risk in Thailand.

Using the case-crossover design, this study examined 520 injured patients aged 18 years and older from two emergency departments in Meuang District, Chiang-Mai Province, Thailand, from June to August of 2016. The case period was defined as 6 h prior to injury, the two control periods as the same 6-h period at 1 day and 7 days prior to injury. Alcohol exposure and the amount consumed were measured for these periods.

Twenty percent of injured patients consumed alcohol within the 6 h prior to injury, averaging 6.9 drinks during that time. The odds of injury for those individuals consuming alcoholic beverages was 5.0 (95% confidence interval 3.0, 8.2) times greater compared to non-exposure individuals; every additional drink consumed increased the odds of injury by 1.3 (95% confidence interval 1.2, 1.4). Alcohol use significantly increased the odds of sustaining an unintentional injury, intentional injury inflicted by someone else or experiencing a road traffic injury (among drivers). The dose-response analysis indicated alcohol use significantly increased the risks of unintentional injury and road traffic injuries (among drivers).

Exposure to alcohol increased the odds of injury in a dose-dependent fashion; hence, comprehensive, cost-effective strategies should be implemented in Thailand to reduce alcohol exposure, binge drinking and drunk driving.