• Neliana Buzi Figlie, John Dunn, Luis Cláudio Santoro Gomes, Janaina Turisco, Roberta Payá, and Ronaldo Laranjeira.
• Escola Paulista de Medicina, Universidade Federal de São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil. neliana_figlie@uol.com.br
• Sao Paulo Med J. 2005 Sep 1; 123 (5): 223228223-8.

Context And ObjectiveFor some patients who have developed significant alcohol-related physical disease, total abstinence from alcohol may offer the best chance of survival. The aim of this study was to investigate motivation for treatment in two groups of alcohol users: outpatients from the gastroenterology clinic and outpatients from the specialist alcohol treatment service.Design And SettingCross-sectional study, at a federally funded public teaching hospital.MethodsThe sample studied was 151 outpatients from the gastroenterology clinic and 175 from the specialist alcohol treatment service. The interview was conducted in the outpatient clinics at the first appointment, and consisted of demographic questions and scales for measuring quality of life, alcohol dependence, pattern of alcohol, motivation for treatment and consequences of alcohol consumption.ResultsThe results suggested that outpatients from the gastroenterology clinic were less dependent on alcohol, had suffered fewer consequences from alcohol and had fewer emotional and mental health problems than did the outpatients from the alcohol treatment service. In relation to their stages of change, the gastroenterology outpatients presented high precontemplation scores at the beginning of treatment while outpatients of alcohol treatment service showed higher scores in contemplation, action and maintenance.ConclusionThe medical treatment may be a reason for the temporary alcohol abstinence behavior among the gastroenterology outpatients.

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