TY - JOUR PY - 2003// TI - A cross-national meta-analysis of alcohol and injury: data from the Emergency Room Collaborative Alcohol Analysis Project (ERCAAP) JO - Addiction A1 - Cherpitel, Cheryl J. A1 - Bond, Jason C. A1 - Ye, Yinjiao A1 - Borges, Guilherme L. G. A1 - MacDonald, Sheila A1 - Giesbrecht, Norman SP - 1277 EP - 1286 VL - 98 IS - 9 N2 - AIMS: To examine the relationship of acute alcohol consumption with an injury compared to a non-injury event in the emergency room across ERs in five countries. DESIGN: Meta-analysis was used to evaluate the consistency and magnitude of the association of a positive blood alcohol concentration (BAC) at the time of arrival in the ER and self-reported consumption within 6 hours prior to the event with admission to the ER for an injury compared to a non-injury, and the extent to which contextual (socio-cultural and organizational) variables explain effect sizes. FINDINGS: When controlling for age, gender and drinking five or more drinks on an occasion at least monthly, pooled effect size was significant and of a similar magnitude for both BAC and self-reported consumption, with those positive on either measure over half as likely again to be admitted to the ER with an injury compared to a medical problem. Effect sizes were found to be homogeneous across ERs for BAC, but not for self-report. Trauma center status and legal level of intoxication were positively predictive of self-reported consumption effect size on injury. CONCLUSIONS: These data suggest a moderate, but robust association of a positive BAC and self-report with admission to the ER with an injury, and that contextual variables also appear to play a role in the alcohol-injury nexus. LA - SN - 0965-2140 UR - http://dx.doi.org/ ID - ref1 ER -