Translation of alcohol research to the academic medicine community

The goal of alcohol research is to improve overall health and well-being. Alcohol misuse causes an estimated 178,000 deaths annually in the United States, involves over 4 million emergency room visits annually, and contributes to or exacerbates 200 medical disorders and conditions. Reducing and preventing the pathology and other consequences of alcohol misuse can significantly reduce morbidity and mortality. The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) was created in 1970 in response to national interest in fundamental research to address these challenges. The mission of NIAAA is to generate and disseminate fundamental knowledge about adverse effects of alcohol on health and well-being and apply that knowledge to improve the diagnosis, prevention, and treatment of alcohol-related problems, including alcohol use disorder, across the lifespan. Major advances have been made in the prevention and reduction of alcohol misuse, alcohol use disorder, and their consequences by (1) identifying patterns, trends, and public health impacts of alcohol misuse and designing effective interventions, (2) elucidating biological mechanisms of alcohol misuse and its consequences, including alcohol-related pathology, and (3) improving the diagnosis and treatment of alcohol use disorder and other alcohol-related conditions. Such efforts require an iterative process whereby the National Institutes of Health and NIAAA interact with medical schools and academic health systems of academic medicine to engage health professionals and health sciences students, clinical trainees, and faculty to meet these goals. Major challenges remain in translating fundamental research in diagnosis, prevention, and treatment into clinical practice in the academic medical community and into information for the public at large. The present commentary is a brief overview of recent alcohol research from a translational perspective for the academic medical community, described by: Quod Facimus, Quid Fecimus, et Quo Vadimus (Where Do We Come From? What are We? Where Are We Going?).