Citation

Stafstrom M, Ostergren PO. Accid. Anal. Prev. 2008; 40(3): 920-925.

Affiliation

Department of Health Sciences, Division of Social Medicine and Global Health, Lund University, UMAS, 205 02 Malmö, Sweden. (martin.stafstrom@med.lu.se)

Copyright

(Copyright © 2008, Elsevier Publishing)

DOI

10.1016/j.aap.2007.10.008

PMID

18460359

Abstract

The purpose of the present study was to analyse if a community-based intervention has led to a decrease in alcohol-related accidents and violence, and whether this was mediated by a reduction in excessive drinking and frequency of distilled spirits consumption. We applied logistic regression analyses on cross-sectional, non-repeated data, which was collected from a questionnaire distributed in classrooms to all 9th graders from 1999 to 2001, and in 2003 (n=1376, 724 boys and 652 girls; response rate=92.3%). All alcohol abstainers (n=330) were excluded from the analyses, making the sample 1046 individuals. The odds ratio for alcohol-related accidents was significantly lower, comparing the baseline year (1999) with 2003 (OR 0.5, 95% CI 0.27-0.76). There was also an indication that self-reported alcohol-related violence had decreased between 1999 and 2003 (OR 0.7, 95% CI 0.43-1.01). When controlling these estimates for excessive drinking and frequency of distilled spirits consumption, the differences between survey years were substantially reduced or even deleted. In conclusion, the decrease in alcohol-related accidents and violence among 15-16-year-olds in Trelleborg, between 1999 and 2002, is likely to be attributed to the identified reduction in excessive drinking and frequency of distilled spirits consumption.

Language: en