@article{ref1,
title="Set-up of a population-based model to verify alcohol abstinence via monitoring of the direct alcohol marker phosphatidylethanol 16:0/18:1",
journal="Addiction",
year="2022",
author="Van Uytfanghe, Katleen and Heughebaert, Liesl and Abatih, Emmanuel and Stove, Christophe P.",
volume="ePub",
number="ePub",
pages="ePub-ePub",
abstract="BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Phosphatidylethanol 16:0/18:1 (PEth) is a biomarker for alcohol intake. It has a half-life of 7/8 days. Chronic alcohol consumption causes high PEth values. It can take weeks before PEth values fall below the decision limit for &quot;alcohol abstinence&quot;. Our aim was to validate whether alcohol abstinence can be determined based on two consecutive PEth results above the decision limit. <br><br>DESIGN: Observational study. SETTING: Belgium, February 2019. The study was linked to a social initiative in Belgium, &quot;Tournée Minérale&quot;. PARTICIPANTS: Adults (>18 years, n=796) with varying drinking habits who self-reportedly refrained from alcohol consumption during the study. MEASUREMENTS: A validated liquid chromatography - tandem mass spectrometry method was used to quantify PEth in participants' dried blood samples, collected at 3 time points via remote fingerprick-based self-sampling. <br><br>FINDINGS: A population-based algorithm to evaluate abstinence based on 95% prediction limits was developed by fitting a linear mixed effect model to discern patterns in PEth elimination over time. It took intra- and interindividual variability into consideration. The algorithm was included in a 2-step decision tree, assessing whether (i) PEth values fell within the prediction interval, and (ii) the slope between 2 PEth values was consistent with no alcohol consumption. Data for 74 participants reporting no alcohol intake during the study were used for validation. With a detection limit of &quot;4 units spread over 14 days&quot;, the sensitivity and specificity of the decision tree was 89%. <br><br>CONCLUSIONS: Claims of alcohol abstinence can be verified using a 2-step decision tree for phosphatidylethanol 16:0/18:1 (PEth) values, even when those values are above the limit for &quot;alcohol abstinence&quot;.<p /> <p>Language: en</p>",
language="en",
issn="0965-2140",
doi="10.1111/add.15811",
url="http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/add.15811"
}