Prevalence and neuropsychiatric comorbidities of alcohol use disorders in an elderly Korean population.
OBJECTIVE
We investigated the prevalence and comorbidities of problem drinking in community-dwelling elders living in Korea.


METHODS
Structured face-to-face diagnostic interviews were administered to the 714 Korean elders randomly sampled from Seongnam, Korea. According to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition (DSM-IV) criteria and the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT) scores, the participants were categorized into one of six diagnostic groups: lifetime abstainer, ex-drinker, social drinking, at-risk drinking, alcohol abuse, and alcohol dependence.


RESULTS
Prevalence rates of social drinking, at-risk drinking, alcohol abuse, and alcohol dependence were estimated to be 13.60%, 5.42%, 2.28%, and 2.92%, respectively. Problem drinking was associated with increased risks of smoking (OR = 3.52), whereas social drinking was associated with decreased risks of stroke (OR = 0.27) and depression (OR = 0.49).


CONCLUSIONS
Problem drinking was common particularly in men and associated with smoking. Social drinking was associated with the lower risks of stroke and depression.
Kim
Ki Woong
KW
Department of Psychiatry, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea.
Choi
Eun Ae
EA
Lee
Seok Bum
SB
Park
Joon Hyuk
JH
Lee
Jung Jae
JJ
Huh
Yoonseok
Y
Youn
Jong Choul
JC
Jhoo
Jin Hyeong
JH
Choo
Il Han
IH
Kim
Myoung-Hee
MH
Lee
Dong Young
DY
Woo
Jong Inn
JI
D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000375:Aging / Q000502:physiology; D000428:Alcohol Drinking / Q000453:epidemiology; D019973:Alcohol-Related Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000523:psychology*; D015897:Comorbidity; D003866:Depressive Disorder / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007723:Korea / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests; D015995:Prevalence; D012737:Sex Factors; D012907:Smoking / Q000453:epidemiology; D020521:Stroke / Q000453:epidemiology*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires