ALCOHOLISM IN PERU

Objective: Alcoholism is a problem of worldwide concern. Full apprecia tion of this international national problem requires that adequate dia gnostic measures be constructed and that comparable measures for diffe rent cultures be available so that valid differences in prevalence acr oss cultures can be detected. A Spanish-language version of the Diagno stic Interview Schedule (DIS) has been used for epidemiologic studies of alcohol abuse and dependence in Los Angeles Mexican-Americans and m ainland Puerto Ricans, and the authors used the same instrument to con duct a similar study in Peru. Method: A population sample (N=815) from the Independencia district of Lima, Peru, was chosen for interviews w ith a revised form of the Spanish translation of the DIS. Lifetime Pre valence rates of alcoholism and other DSM-III diagnoses were determine d. Results: The prevalence of alcohol abuse or dependence was higher a mong the men (34.80%) than among the women (2.46%), but the onset for women was earlier. Alcoholism was strongly associated with antisocial personality disorder and with drug abuse or dependence. Conclusions: T he prevalence of alcoholism for the Peruvian men is higher than preval ences for men in U.S. studies, but the prevalence among the Peruvian w omen is one of the lowest reported. The high prevalence among men is l ikely due to cultural mores but may also be linked to the stresses fou nd in impoverished societies undergoing rapid social, cultural, and ec onomic change.