DSM-IV ALCOHOL DEPENDENCE AND DRINKING IN THE US POPULATION - A RISK ANALYSIS

PURPOSE: This paper examines the relationship between alcohol dependen ce according to the criteria found in the 4th edition of the Diagnosti c and Statistical Manual (DSM-IV) of the American Psychiatric Associat ion and drinking in the U.S. general population. METHODS: The data set under analysis is the 1988 National Health Interview Survey, which in terviewed a probability sample of 22,102 adult drinkers in the U.S. ho usehold population. The response rate was 86%. RESULTS: Results indica te that there is a linear relationship between DSM-IV dependence and t he mean number of drinks consumed per day, or the number of days drink ing five or more glasses of alcohol in the past 12 months. Respondents who reported consuming five or more drinks in a day have about six ti mes more chances of being dependent than respondents who did not repor t such pattern of drinking. Older drinkers are less at risk than young er drinkers. CONCLUSIONS: There is a risk of alcohol dependence at rel atively low volumes of consumption. The risk increases gradually with the volume of consumption. An added and higher risk exists when drinke rs engage in a pattern of consumption involving the ingestion of five or more drinks per day. (C) 1997 Elsevier Science Inc.