title: The epidemiology of alcohol dependence and problem drinking in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
abstract: We describe here a prevalence study of alcohol dependence and problem drinking in a representative sample of 10,203 adults in Addis Ababa. At the first stage the study employed a 4-scale screening instrument (CAGE) and at the second stage the Composite International Diagnostic Interview (CIDI) was used to identify cases of alcohol dependence. Of the total population, 2.7% responded positively to at least 2 of the 4 CAGE items, fulfilling the definition of problem drinking. By use of the CIDI, the weighted lifetime and one-month prevalence of alcohol dependence was 1.0% and 0.8%, respectively. It occurred almost exclusively among men. The prevalence of problem drinking increased with increasing age. The trend was statistically significant (P for trend = 0.03). On the other hand, there was a statistically significant negative trend in the association with educational level, use decreasing with increasing educational attainment (P for trend = 0.0006). There was also a statistically significant 39% increased risk of alcohol use with employment. The association with ethnicity was not statistically significant. Only sex was significantly associated with alcohol dependence. Women had a 84% less risk of becoming dependent compared to men.
authors.affiliation: Department of Community Health, Faculty of Medicine, University of Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Kebede
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Alem
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D019973:Alcohol-Related Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology*; D005002:Ethiopia / Q000453:epidemiology; D005260:Female; D006306:Health Surveys; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015995:Prevalence; D012307:Risk Factors; D012494:Sampling Studies; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D013223:Statistics as Topic; D019966:Substance-Related Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology; D014504:Urban Health / Q000706:statistics & numerical data