title: [Abstinence in alcohol-dependence: critical and updated approach of the 2001 national guidelines].
abstract: 2001 French guidelines on the modalities of post-detoxification care for alcohol-dependent patients recommend life-long abstinence from alcohol. Though experts of this conference have used a methodological tool based on the analysis of the literature for each specific issue, the recommended goal of abstinence only follows from expert advice and does not seem to be evaluated with the aforementioned methodological tool. Moreover, from 2001, several scientific works of higher level of evidence than expert advice show that a small but significant proportion of alcohol-dependent patients could maintain non-problematic drinking stably in time. The outcome discrepancies between patients could result from social, clinical and biological factors. Today, it seems necessary not to consider alcohol-dependent patients as a homogeneous population anymore, but on the contrary to delimit subgroups with different outcome profiles. Better knowledge about these subgroups of patients could allow the diversifying and personalising of care schemes, including in some cases temporary abstinence or controlled-drinking patterns.
authors.affiliation: CHU Lille, service d'addictologie, 59037 Lille, France. benjamin.rolland@chru-lille.fr
authors.forename: Benjamin
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Rolland
authors.forename: Vincent
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Laprevote
authors.forename: Pierre Alexis
authors.initials: PA
authors.lastname: Geoffroy
authors.forename: Dewi
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Guardia
authors.forename: Raymund
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Schwan
authors.forename: Olivier
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Cottencin
mesh_terms: D000437:Alcoholism / Q000145:classification / Q000534:rehabilitation / Q000628:therapy*; D003245:Consensus Statements as Topic; D018450:Disease Progression; D005069:Evaluation Studies as Topic; D005602:France; D006801:Humans; D007206:Individuality; D017410:Practice Guidelines as Topic; D057285:Precision Medicine / Q000379:methods / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D013695:Temperance