'Single question' can highlight alcohol addiction

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by Change | 12 Mar 2009

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New research has suggested that a single question from a doctor can help to uncover alcohol addiction in patients, thereby enabling addiction treatment to begin quickly.

A single question could be all that is needed to discover an alcohol addiction among patients and get them on the way to a rehab clinic, it has been claimed.

Researchers from the Boston Medical Center in the US, suggest that a question recommended by the National Institute of alcohol abuse and Alcoholism works well in highlighting potential alcohol abuse and alcoholism.

The question - "How many times in the past year have you had X or more drinks in a day?" - works better in determining the likelihood of an alcohol addiction when used on its own rather than as part of a range of screening questions, the researchers said.

"Single-question screening tests for unhealthy alcohol use may help to increase the frequency of screening in primary-care," explained lead author Peter Smith.

Uncovering and admitting a problem with alcohol addiction is an important step for patients on the road to making a full recovery, usually involving a stay at a rehab clinic where professional advice can be provided.

Experts at the Sunset Malibu rehab clinic have called on people to recognise that addiction needs to be treated like any other disease, so that the stigma surrounding it can be dropped, helping people to come to terms with the problem and get help earlier in their addiction.

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