| Publication | Date | Language | Abstracts | Access |
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Aalto, M., Alho, H., Halme, J.T., Seppä, K. AUDIT and its abbreviated versions in detecting heavy and binge drinking in a general population survey. Drug and Alcohol Dependence Volume 103, Issue 1-2, 1 July 2009, Pages 25-29 |
2009 | English | Background: The aim of this study was to define optimal cut points for the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT) and its abbreviated versions (AUDIT-C, AUDIT-QF, and AUDIT-3), and to evaluate how effectively these questionnaires detect heavy drinking in the general population.esults and conclusions: The AUDIT and its abbreviated versions are valid for detecting heavy drinking also in a general population sample. However, performance seems to vary between the different versions and accuracy of each test is achieved only by using tailored cut points according to gender. The AUDIT and AUDIT-C are effective for both males and females. The optimal cut points for males were found to be ≥7 or 8 for AUDIT and ≥6 for AUDIT-C. Among females the optimal cut points were found to be ≥5 for AUDIT and ≥4 for AUDIT-C. The study also indicates that AUDIT-QF among females and AUDIT-3 among males are relatively effective. The cut points for detecting all heavy drinkers (including binge drinkers without exceeding weekly thresholds) were lower than for detecting heavy drinkers excluding those who are only binge drinkers. | Via Publisher |
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Aalto, M., Alho, H., Halme, J.T., Seppä, K. The Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT) and its derivatives in screening for heavy drinking among the elderly. International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, Volume 26, Issue 9, September 2011, Pages 881-885 |
2011 | English | Objective: The performance of the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT) in screening for heavy drinking among the elderly has been unsatisfactory. The aim of the present study was to determine whether tailoring the cut point improves the performance of the AUDIT and its derivatives in this age group. Results: Based on the TLFB, 118 subjects (22.8%) were heavy drinkers. The areas under receiving operating characteristics curves (AUROCs) were equivalent (≥0.898) for all questionnaires. When using the standard cut point of ≥8 for the AUDIT, the sensitivity was 0.48. Lowering the cut point to ≥5 led to both a sensitivity and specificity over 0.85. The optimal cut point of the AUDIT-C was ≥4. The AUDIT-QF, AUDIT-3 and elderly specific AUDIT-3 did not provide optimal combinations of sensitivity and specificity with any cut point. Conclusions: The AUDIT and AUDIT-C are accurate in screening for heavy drinking among the elderly if the cut points are tailored to this age group. | Via Publisher |
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Aalto, M., Tuunanen, M., Sillanaukee, P., Seppä, K. Effectiveness of structured questionnaires for screening heavy drinking in middle-aged women. Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research, Volume 30, Issue 11, November 2006, Pages 1884-1888 |
2006 | English | Background: There is a need for an effective and feasible alcohol screening instrument. The aim of the study was to evaluate how the abbreviated versions of the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT) questionnaire perform in comparison with the original AUDIT and what the optimal cutoffs are when screening for heavy drinking among women. Methods: All the 40-year-old women in the city of Tampere, Finland, are invited yearly for a health screening. From 1 year, data from 894 women (response rate 68.2%) invited for a health screening were utilized in the study. The original 10-item AUDIT, AUDIT-C, Five Shot, AUDIT-PC, AUDIT-3, AUDIT-QF, and CAGE were evaluated against the Timeline Followback. Consumption of at least 140 g of absolute ethanol per week on average during the past month was considered heavy drinking. Results: In the Timeline Followback, the mean±SD weekly reported alcohol consumption was 45±67 g (range 0-936 g) of absolute ethanol. Of the women, 6.2% (55/894) were heavy drinkers. The optimal combination of sensitivity and specificity was reached for the AUDIT with cutoff ≥6, for the AUDIT-C with cutoff ≥5, for the Five Shot with cutoff ≥2.0, for the AUDIT-PC with cutoff ≥4, and for the AUDIT-QF with cutoff ≥4. When choosing the optimal cutoffs, the AUDIT-C, the Five Shot, the AUDIT-PC, and the AUDIT-QF performed as well as the 10-item AUDIT. With these cutoffs, sensitivities were 0.84 to 0.93 and specificities were 0.83 to 0.90. The AUDIT-3 and the CAGE did not perform as well as the other questionnaires. Conclusions: The 10-item AUDIT, AUDIT-C, Five Shot, AUDIT-PC, and AUDIT-QF seem to be equally effective tools in screening for heavy drinking among middle-aged women. However, their applicability is achieved only if the cutoffs are tailored according to gender. | Via Publisher |
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Au, D.H., Kivlahan, D.R., Bryson, C.L., Blough, D., Bradley, K.A. Alcohol screening scores and risk of hospitalizations for GI conditions in men. Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research, Volume 31, Issue 3, March 2007, Pages 443-451 |
2007 | English | Background: Alcohol misuse is a common cause of liver disease, upper gastrointestinal (GI) bleeding, and pancreatitis, but it is not known whether alcohol screening questionnaires can identify patients at increased risk for hospitalizations due to these conditions. Objective: To evaluate the association of alcohol screening scores with the risk of subsequent hospitalization for alcohol-related GI conditions. Design: Retrospective cohort study. Participants: Male general medicine outpatients from 7 Veterans Affairs (VA) medical centers who returned mailed questionnaires. Measurements: The CAGE questionnaire (0-4 points) and the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test-Consumption questions (AUDIT-C; 0-12 points) were included on mailed surveys. The main outcome, "GI hospitalization," was a primary VA or Medicare discharge diagnosis indicating liver disease, upper GI bleeding, or pancreatitis. Results: Among 31,311 patients followed, a median of 3.75 years, patients with CAGE scores ≥2 points or AUDIT-C scores ≥6 points were at a significantly increased risk for GI hospitalizations. Adjusted hazard ratios (HR adj ) ranged from 1.6 (95% CI 1.2-2.0) for CAGE score 2, to 1.7 (1.4-2.2) for CAGE 4, and from 1.4 (1.01-2.0) for AUDIT-C scores from 6 to 7, to 2.7 (1.9-3.8) for AUDIT-C scores from 10 to 12. Secondary analyses demonstrated that the association was the strongest among patients less than 50 years of age who reported drinking in the past year. Conclusions: Brief alcohol screening questionnaires predict subsequent hospitalizations for alcohol-related GI conditions. | Via Publisher |
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Bazzo, S., Battistella, G., Riscica, P., (...), Geromel, M., Czerwinsky, L. Reliability of a self-report Italian version of the AUDIT-C questionnaire, used to estimate alcohol consumption by pregnant women in an obstetric setting. Rivista di Psichiatria, Volume 50, Issue 2, 1 March 2015, Pages 89-94 |
2015 | English | Aim. Alcohol consumption during pregnancy can result in a range of harmful effects on the developing foetus and newborn, called Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD). The identification of pregnant women who use alcohol enables to provide information, support and treatment for women and the surveillance of their children. The AUDIT-C (the shortened consumption version of the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test) is used for investigating risky drinking with different populations, and has been applied to estimate alcohol use and risky drinking also in antenatal clinics. The aim of the study was to investigate the reliability of a self-report Italian version of the AUDIT-C questionnaire to detect alcohol consumption during pregnancy, regardless of its use as a screening tool. Results. Overall, about one third of women recalled alcohol consumption at least once during the current pregnancy. The questionnaire had an internal consistency of 0.565 for the group of the year 2010, of 0.516 for the year 2011, and of 0.542 for the overall group. The highest itemtotal correlations' coefficient was 0.687 and the highest inter-item correlations' coefficient was 0.675. As for the discriminatory power of the questionnaire, the highest Ferguson's delta coefficient was 0.623. Conclusions. These findings suggest that the Italian self-report version of the AUDIT-C possesses unsatisfactory reliability to estimate alcohol consumption during pregnancy when used as self-report questionnaire in an obstetric setting. | Open Access |
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Bell, S., Britton, A. Reliability of a retrospective decade-based life-course alcohol consumption questionnaire administered in later life. Addiction, Volume 110, Issue 10, 1 October 2015, Pages 1563-1573 |
2015 | English | Background and aims: Retrospective measures of alcohol intake are becoming increasingly popular; however, the reliability of such measures remains uncertain. This study assessed the reliability of a retrospective decade-based life-course alcohol consumption questionnaire, based on the standardized Alcohol Use Disorder Identification Test-Consumption (AUDIT-C) administered in older age in a well-characterized cohort study. Design, setting, participants and measurements: A retrospective alcohol life-grid was administered to 5980 participants (72% male, mean age 70 years) in the Whitehall II study covering frequency of drinking, number of drinks in a typical drinking day and frequency of consuming six or more drinks in a single drinking occasion in the teens (16-19years) through to the 80s. A subsample of 385 individuals completed a repeat survey to determine test-retest reliability. Retrospective measures were also compared with prospectively ascertained information and used to predict objectively measured systolic blood pressure to test their predictive validity. Findings: Across all decades of life, test-retest reliability was generally good (κ range = 0.62-0.78 for frequency, 0.55-0.62 for usual number of drinks and 0.57-0.65 for frequency of consuming six or more drinks in a single occasion). The concordance between prospective and retrospective measures was consistently moderate to high. The life-grid method performed better than a single question in identifying life-time abstainers. Retrospective measures were also related to systolic blood pressure in the manner anticipated. Conclusion: A retrospective decade-based AUDIT-C grid administered in older age provides a relatively reliable measure of alcohol consumption across the life-course. | Open Access |
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Bischof, G., Reinhardt, S., Grothues, J., (...), John, U., Rumpf, H.-J. Effects of item sequence on the performance of the AUDIT in general practices. Drug and Alcohol Dependence, Volume 79, Issue 3, 1 September 2005, Pages 373-377 |
2005 | English | Background: One important task in identifying subjects with alcohol use disorders (AUDs) in the general medical practice setting is the development of effective screening instruments. Sensitivity of screening questionnaires might differ according to the introductory items. This study compares two versions of the alcohol use disorders identification test (AUDIT) with varied item sequence randomly applied to patients derived from a sample of general practitioners (GP) patients. Methods: Participants were recruited from general practices in two northern German cities; they received two different versions of the AUDIT, one group receiving the original version starting with three items addressing frequency and quantity of alcohol use (AUDIT1), and a second group receiving a version in which these items were put at the end of the questionnaire (AUDIT2). In total, 10.803 screenings were conducted (refusal rate: 5%). Alcohol use disorders were diagnosed using the Munich-Composite International Diagnostic Interview (M-CIDI). Results: Logistic regression analysis revealed that AUDIT1 subjects had higher scores in the consumption items of the AUDIT, whereas AUDIT2 subjects scored higher on items focussing on symptoms of alcohol dependence or abuse. Conclusion: The sequence upon which items of the AUDIT are presented influences the report of drinking patterns and symptoms of alcohol use disorders in GP patients | Via Publisher |
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Bowring, A.L., Gouillou, M., Hellard, M., Dietze, P. Comparing short versions of the AUDIT in a community-based survey of young people. BMC Public Health, Volume 13, Issue 1, 2013, Article number 301 |
2013 | English | Background: The 10-item Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT-10) is commonly used to monitor harmful alcohol consumption among high-risk groups, including young people. However, time and space constraints have generated interest for shortened versions. Commonly used variations are the AUDIT-C (three questions) and the Fast Alcohol Screening Test (FAST) (four questions), but their utility in screening young people in non-clinical settings has received little attention. Results: We recruited 640 participants (68% female) reporting drinking in the previous 12 months. Median AUDIT-10 score was 10 in males and 9 in females, and 127 (20%) were classified as having at least high-level alcohol problems according to WHO classification.The FAST scored consistently high across statistical measures; it explained 85.6% of variance in AUDIT-10, correlation with AUDIT-10 was 0.92, and Cronbach's alpha was 0.66. A number of novel four-item AUDIT variations scored similarly high. Comparatively, the AUDIT-C scored substantially lower on all measures except internal consistency. Conclusions: Numerous abbreviated variations of the AUDIT may be a suitable alternative to the AUDIT-10 for classifying high-level alcohol problems in a community-based population of young Australians. Four-item AUDIT variations scored more consistently high across all evaluated statistics compared to three-item combinations. Novel AUDIT versions may be more effective than many established shortened versions as an alternative screening tool to the AUDIT-10 to measure hazardous or harmful alcohol consumption in this population. | Open Access |
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Bradley, K.A., Bush, K.R., Epler, A.J., Dobie, D.J., Davis, T.M., Sporleder, J.L., Maynard, C., Burman, M.L., Kivlahan, D.R. Two brief alcohol-screening tests from the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT): Validation in a female Veterans Affairs patient population. Archives of Internal Medicine, Volume 163, Issue 7, 14 April 2003, Pages 821-829. |
2003 | English | Background: Primary care physicians need a brief alcohol questionnaire that identifies hazardous drinking and alcohol use disorders. The Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT) questions 1 through 3 (AUDIT-C), and AUDIT question 3 alone are effective alcohol-screening tests in male Veterans Affairs (VA) patients, but have not been validated in women.Conclusions: The standard and sex-specific AUDIT-Cs are effective screening tests for past-year hazardous drinking and/or active alcohol abuse or dependence in female patients in a VA study. | Open Access |
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Bradley, K.A., McDonell, M.B., Bush, K., (...), Diehr, P., Fihn, S.D. The AUDIT alcohol consumption questions: Reliability, validity, and responsiveness to change in older male primary care patients. Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research, Volume 22, Issue 8, November 1998, Pages 1842-1849 |
1998 | English | Objectives: To determine the reliability, validity, and responsiveness to change of AUDIT (Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test) questions 1 to 3 about alcohol consumption in a primary care setting. Measures: Three self‐administered AUDIT consumption questions were compared with a telephone‐administered version of the trilevel World Health Organization interview about alcohol consumption. Results: Of 393 eligible patients, 264 (67%) completed interviews. Test‐retest reliability—Correlations between baseline and repeat measures 3 months later for four dimensions of consumption according to the AUDIT, ranged from 0.65 to 0.85, among patients who indicated they had not changed their drinking (Kendall's Tau‐b). Criterion validity—Correlations between AUDIT and interview for four dimensions of alcohol consumption ranged from 0.47 to 0.66 (Kendall's Tau‐b). Discriminative validity—The AUDIT questions were specific (90 to 93%), but only moderately sensitive (54 to 79%), for corresponding criteria for heavy drinking. Responsiveness to change—The AUDIT consumption questions had a Guyatt responsiveness statistic of 1.04 for detecting a change of 7 drinks/week, suggesting excellent responsiveness to change. Conclusions: AUDIT questions 1 to 3 demonstrate moderate to good validity, but excellent reliability and responsiveness to change. Although they often underestimate heavy alcohol consumption according to interview, they performed adequately to be used as a proxy measure of consumption in a clinical trial of heavy drinkers in this population. | Via Publisher |