Citation

Reoux JP, Malte CA, Kivlahan DR, Saxon AJ. J. Addict. Dis. 2002; 21(4): 81-91.

Affiliation

Veterans Affairs Puget Sound Health Care System, Addictions Treatment Center, Seattle, WA 98108, USA. joe.reoux@med.va.gov

Copyright

(Copyright © 2002, Informa - Taylor and Francis Group)

DOI

10.1300/J069v21n04_08

PMID

12296504

Abstract

We evaluated whether the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT) predicted clinically meaningful alcohol withdrawal syndrome (AWS) in 118 alcohol dependent patients without a history of seizures. Patients were monitored by serial administration of the revised Clinical Institute Withdrawal Assessment Scale for Alcohol (CIWA-Ar) during inpatient detoxification. Patients (N = 55) who reached threshold level of AWS for receiving medication (CIWA-Ar > 9) scored significantly higher (p <.001) on the AUDIT total score, the dependence sub-scale, and the single item on morning drinking. Sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive power, and screening efficiency showed the value of the AUDIT for identifying patients who developed AWS. The AUDIT should be explored alone and in combination with other parameters to improve screening for clinically meaningful AWS in other settings.

Language: en