A geographic relation between alcohol availability and gonorrhea rates

Background and Objectives: The availability of alcohol measured as alcohol outlet density is associated with numerous alcohol-related outcomes in smal l area analysis. A number of studies suggest that high-risk sexual behavior should also be considered an alcohol-related outcome. Goal of this Study: To assess the geographic relationship between alcohol a vailability and high-risk sexual behavior at the neighborhood level. Study Design: Ecological analysis of the geographic relation between off-pr emise, on-premise, and total alcohol outlet density and reported gonorrhea rates among 155 urban residential census tracts in New Orleans during 1995. Results: All alcohol outlet density variables were positively related to go norrhea rates. Off-premise outlets per square mile was most strongly relate d to gonorrhea rates (beta +/- SE) (beta = 0.582 +/- 0.073), accounting for 29% of the variance in gonorrhea rates. Interpreted as an elasticity, a 10 % increase in off-sale alcohol outlet density accounts for a 5.8% increase in gonorrhea rates. Including the covariates percent black and percent unem ployed to the model reduced but did not remove the effect of off-sale outle t density (beta = 0.192 +/- 0.047). Conclusions: These results indicate there is a geographic relationship betw een alcohol outlet density and gonorrhea rates at the census tract level. A lthough these results cannot be interpreted causally, they do justify a pub lic health intervention as a next step in defining the relation between alc ohol availability and high-risk sexual behavior.