BMJ  2006;332 (4 March), doi:10.1136/bmj.332.7540.0-a

AUDIT to identify alcohol use disorders in primary care

A short questionnaire might be more effective than biochemical markers in identifying patients with alcohol use disorders in an opportunistic screening programme. In a comparative study by Coulton and colleagues (p 511), about 200 men attending primary care completed the alcohol use disorders identification test (AUDIT) questionnaire, and their blood samples were assessed for {gamma}-glutamyltransferase, aspartate aminotransferase, and other markers. The questionnaire had higher sensitivity, specificity, and positive predictive value and was more cost efficient than biochemical markers.


Figure 1
 Credit: JOHN POWELL/REX

 


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Relevant Article

Opportunistic screening for alcohol use disorders in primary care: comparative study
Simon Coulton, Colin Drummond, Darren James, Christine Godfrey, J Martin Bland, Steve Parrott, Timothy Peters the Stepwice Research Team
BMJ 2006 332: 511-517. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

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