title: Onset and staging of DSM-IV alcohol dependence using mean age and survival-hazard methods.
abstract: Orderly onset of psychiatric symptoms has implications for both case detection and the construct validity of the underlying illness. Mean age and survival-hazard techniques were used to study the onset of alcohol abuse and dependence (as defined in the 4th edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders; American Psychiatric Association, 1994) in 369 clinical cases drawn from a heterogeneous regional sample. The methods provided a similar general pattern of symptom sequencing, though only survival-hazard analysis described a punctuated onset of alcoholism in 3 discrete stages: alcohol abuse, dependence, and accommodation to the illness. This model survived a rigorous program of tests for goodness of fit and described the majority of the sample, supporting the construct validity of both alcohol abuse as a discrete first illness phase and of dependence as a set of core constructs distinct from and succeeding abuse. The specific strengths of survival-hazard analysis as a research tool in illness staging research are discussed.
authors.affiliation: Center of Alcohol Studies, Rutgers University, Piscataway, New Jersey 08855-0969, USA.
authors.forename: J W
authors.initials: JW
authors.lastname: Langenbucher
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Chung
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D017668:Age of Onset; D000437:Alcoholism / Q000175:diagnosis*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D019966:Substance-Related Disorders