title: The role of alcoholic beverage preference in the severity of alcohol dependence and adherence to the treatment.
abstract: The severity of dependence on alcohol and the efficacy of diverse types of treatments for alcoholism have been the subject of various researches. This study focused on the types of beverages preferentially consumed by alcohol-dependent outpatients and their effects on the severity of dependence and therapeutic outcomes. Our sample comprised 153 patients, 18-60 years of age, with an International Classification of Diseases (ICD-10) diagnosis of alcohol dependence, who were randomly divided into three different groups to receive topiramate (up to 300mg/day), naltrexone (50mg/day), or placebo during 12 weeks of follow-up. Spirits and beer were the main beverages consumed. At the start of this research, the group of spirits drinkers showed higher severity of alcohol dependence, higher craving for alcohol, more frequent history of treatments for alcoholism, and lower income than the group of beer preference drinkers. During the study, beer preference drinkers demonstrated higher adherence to the treatment, independently of the types of medications prescribed (P=.02, odds ratio, 2.46, 95% confidence interval, 1.17-5.19). This study suggests that the severity of dependence and the adherence to the treatment can be factors that set apart beer drinkers from spirits drinkers. As the compliance with the treatment for alcoholism was lower among spirits preference drinkers, a more intensive model of treatment would be necessary.
authors.affiliation: Interdisciplinary Group of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs of the Psychiatric Institute of the Clinical Hospitals, University of São Paulo, Brazil. dbaltieri@uol.com.br
authors.forename: Danilo Antonio
authors.initials: DA
authors.lastname: Baltieri
authors.forename: Fábio R
authors.initials: FR
authors.lastname: Daró
authors.forename: Philip L
authors.initials: PL
authors.lastname: Ribeiro
authors.forename: Arthur G
authors.initials: AG
authors.lastname: De Andrade
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000434:Alcoholic Beverages; D000437:Alcoholism / Q000188:drug therapy*; D001515:Beer; D005632:Fructose / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000031:analogs & derivatives* / Q000627:therapeutic use; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009042:Motivation; D009271:Naltrexone / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D009292:Narcotic Antagonists / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D010349:Patient Compliance; D000077236:Topiramate; D016896:Treatment Outcome
chemical_list: D009292:Narcotic Antagonists; D000077236:Topiramate; D005632:Fructose; D009271:Naltrexone