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Assessment of alcohol-screening instruments in tuberculosis patients
J H Schoeman1, C D Parry, C J Lombard
1National Tuberculosis Research Programme, South African Medical Research Council, Tygeberg.
Setting:
Two samples of hospitalised tuberculosis (TB) patients were randomly selected.
Objective:
To evaluate the usefulness of two alcohol-use screening instruments (AUDIT and CAGE).
Design:
A cross-sectional analytic study was conducted with 122 patients (61 Coloured and 61 African).
Results:
In the coloured group, AUDIT and CAGE identified 57% and 62% of patients respectively as scoring above the cut-off points for possible alcohol misuse. In the African group, AUDIT and CAGE identified 36% and 31% of patients respectively as scoring above the cut-off points. Rates for risky drinking found in community-based studies were lower than those found in this study for the Coloured sample. The male African group's CAGE result for alcohol misuse (17/46; 37%) is similar to the CAGE finding for African male mineworkers (33%), also findings from a community study in African males (34-37%). Both instruments were in agreement with each other for both groups. Slight to substantial agreement was observed between the instruments and other assessments of alcohol misuse (ward sister's perception, patient's file, self-perception and communal drinking), as well as between these assessments, for both groups.
Conclusion:
Screening instruments such as AUDIT and CAGE can play a useful role in describing alcohol misuse among TB patients and in facilitating intervention programmes.