title: Assessment of alcohol consumption among hepatitis C-positive people receiving opioid maintenance treatment using direct ethanol metabolites and self-report: a pilot study.
abstract: This study was conducted to identify the alcohol consumption among hepatitis C-positive people receiving opioid maintenance therapy using self-report and biomarkers. A total of 49 people (28 male, 21 female) were hepatitis C virus (HCV) positive and were included. The alcohol use disorder identification test (AUDIT) and self-reported ethanol intake in the last 28 days were assessed. In addition to gamma-glutamyl-transferase (GGT) and mean corpuscular volume (MCV), ethyl glucuronide (EtG) and ethyl sulphate (EtS) were determined in serum and urine (UEtG, UEtS, SEtG) using liquid chromatography/tandem mass-spectroscopy (LC/MS-MS) with deuterated internal standards. Abstinence from alcohol was reported for the last 28 days by 13 participants and for the last 7 days by 22. AUDIT was > 8 in 27 cases. The maximum values were 34.8 mg/l for UEtG, 5.3 mg/l for UEtS and 0.15 for SEtG. Among the 19 UEtG positives, 8 had not reported any ethanol intake in the 7 days prior to the study. Six participants reported intake of up to 320 g of ethanol in the last 7 days, but were negative for SEtG, UEtG and UEtS. Self-reported ethanol intake in the last 28 days correlated with AUDIT score (r = 0.733, P < 0.001), with the direct ethanol metabolites and MCV. In this population, abstinence and episodic heavy drinking are more common than in the general population. Episodic heavy drinking is a significant cause of acute risk in this population. Results from biomarker testing could indicate cases of under- as well as over-reporting of alcohol consumption. Further research on the diagnostic accuracy of direct ethanol metabolites, including the use of phosphatidylethanol (PEth), in this setting is needed.
authors: Psychiatric University Clinics, Switzerland. f.wurst@salk.at
authors: Friedrich M
authors: FM
authors: Wurst
authors: Paul S
authors: PS
authors: Haber
authors: Gerhard
authors: G
authors: Wiesbeck
authors: Bianca
authors: B
authors: Watson
authors: Cate
authors: C
authors: Wallace
authors: John B
authors: JB
authors: Whitfield
authors: Claudia
authors: C
authors: Halter
authors: Wolfgang
authors: W
authors: Weinmann
authors: Katherine M
authors: KM
authors: Conigrave
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000428:Alcohol Drinking / Q000097:blood* / Q000453:epidemiology*; D004909:Erythrocyte Indices; D005260:Female; D008401:Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry; D020719:Glucuronides / Q000097:blood / Q000652:urine; D020404:Glycerophospholipids; D006526:Hepatitis C / Q000097:blood* / Q000453:epidemiology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010865:Pilot Projects; D015995:Prevalence; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D013463:Sulfuric Acid Esters / Q000097:blood / Q000652:urine; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D005723:gamma-Glutamyltransferase / Q000097:blood / Q000652:urine
chemical_list: D020719:Glucuronides; D020404:Glycerophospholipids; D013463:Sulfuric Acid Esters; C051521:phosphatidylethanol; D005723:gamma-Glutamyltransferase; C011612:diethyl sulfate