Problem drinking among hospitalized patients in Hungary.

Alcohol is an important determinant of the overall burden of disease in Eastern Europe. It is a particularly important problem in Hungary, where death rates from cirrhosis have increased rapidly to levels much higher than in neighbouring countries. This study sought to describe the prevalence of problem drinking among the hospitalized population in Hungary by means of a survey of self-reported alcohol consumption and of the prevalence of current or lifetime problem drinking among hospitalized patients in the four teaching hospitals in Hungary. A survey was conducted of all patients (n = 3140) admitted to medical, surgical, trauma, psychiatric and neurological wards over a 2-week period in 1997 who stayed in hospital for at least 24 h, using a survey instrument based on the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT) and Luebeck Alcoholism Screening Test (LAST) instruments designed to screen for current and lifetime problem drinking respectively. In all, 23.5% of men and over 53.5% of women reported never drinking alcohol. Of those who did drink, about one in eight men and less than 1% of women reported drinking 5 or more drinks on a day when they drank. Whether defined by LAST or AUDIT, the prevalence of problem drinking was approximately 19% among men and 2% among women, although this rose to 32-35% among men aged 35-44 years. The rate did not vary significantly with employment or education, but was higher among those who were divorced. These high rates of problem drinking indicate the need for coherent policies on alcohol in Hungary.