Preventing the Consequences of Alcohol Abuse: Identification of Soldiers at High Risk for Fatal and Serious Injuries
Abstract
The main goal of this study is to improve our understanding of the relationship between alcohol problems and risk of serious injury by documenting the prevalence of alcohol-related diagnoses among soldiers admitted to the hospital with and without injuries. In this study's first year we have formulated diagnostic criteria for identifying alcohol- and injury-related hospitalizations and verified the continuity of diagnostic codes between the ICD-9 and the ICD-9-CM. Additionally, we have developed a method to identify unique alcohol-related hospitalizations using episodes of care in order to improve the accuracy of the frequency and prevalence estimates for alcohol-related diagnoses within the Army. Descriptive analyses of the prevalence of hospitalizations and characteristics of soldiers hospitalized for alcohol abuse have begun. Analyses comparing Army and civilian alcohol-related hospitalizations are also underway. The work to date highlights the importance of an expanded list of alcohol-related diagnostic criteria to ensure complete case ascertainment, and the necessity of constructing a valid episode of care methodology in order to obtain accurate estimates of alcohol-related hospitalizations.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jul 01, 2003
- Accession Number
- ADA420107
Entities
People
- Nicole S. Bell