title: Measurement of alcohol-involved injury in community prevention: the search for a surrogate III.
abstract: Alcohol is involved in a substantial percentage of injuries, with estimates in the United States ranging from 3% of drownings up to 50% of fatal traffic crashes. Thus, alcohol-involved injury is a natural target for prevention efforts, particularly at the community level. Although a potentially valuable target, the measurement of alcohol-involved injuries for purposes of outcome evaluation of such prevention is problematic. The consistent measurement of alcohol in the blood of injured persons is not a regular aspect of acute medical treatment. Thus, alternatives are needed both for epidemiological, as well as prevention, research. This study will review three alternative measurements of alcohol-involved injury [i.e., (a) emergency room interviews and breath testing for blood alcohol concentration, (b) telephone surveys of self-reported injuries after drinking, and (c) injury surrogate derived archival data from hospital inpatient treatment]. After comparing the strengths and weaknesses of all three and investigating the sensitivity of the injury surrogate to detect changes in alcohol-involved injuries, this study concludes that the injury surrogate is a reliable, low-cost, and valid outcome measure for prevention evaluation.
authors.affiliation: Prevention Research Center, Berkeley, California 94704, USA.
authors.forename: A J
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Treno
authors.forename: H D
authors.initials: HD
authors.lastname: Holder
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000437:Alcoholism / Q000097:blood / Q000150:complications* / Q000453:epidemiology; D001944:Breath Tests; D002940:Circadian Rhythm; D015897:Comorbidity; D004632:Emergency Medical Services / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D005260:Female; D006306:Health Surveys; D006753:Hospital Records; D006760:Hospitalization / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015233:Models, Statistical; D017063:Outcome Assessment, Health Care; D012042:Registries / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D012307:Risk Factors; D012621:Seasons; D014193:Trauma Centers / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D015599:Trauma Severity Indices; D014947:Wounds and Injuries / Q000097:blood / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000517:prevention & control