Alcoholism

Alcoholism is a dependency on alcohol characterized by craving (a strong need to drink), loss of control (being unable to stop drinking despite a desire to do so), physical dependence and withdrawal symptoms, and tolerance (increasing difficulty of becoming drunk).

Screening

Several tools may be used to detect the habitual abuse of alcohol. The CAGE questionnaire, developed by Dr. John Ewing, is one such example that may be used to screen patients quickly in a doctor's office.

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Two "yes" responses for a male and one "yes" response for a female indicate that the respondent should be investigated further.

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The questionnaire asks the following questions:

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• Have you ever felt you needed to cut down on your drinking?
• Have people annoyed you by criticising your drinking?
• Have you ever felt guilty about drinking?
• Have you ever felt you needed a drink first thing in the morning to steady your nerves or to get rid of a hangover (eye-opener)?
• Have you ever got in a fight due to drinking?

Another screening questionnaire is the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT), developed by the World Health Organization.

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