• Raymund Schwan, Paolo Di Patritio, Eliane Albuisson, Laurent Malet, Geores Brousse, Jerome Lerond, Vincent Laprevote, and Jean-Marc Boivin.
• CHU de Nancy, Addiction Treatment and Prevention Center, Hôpital de Brabois, Bâtiment Philippe Canton, Rue du Morvan, Vandoeuvre-Les-Nancy, Cedex, France. r.schwan@chu-nancy.fr
• Eur J Emerg Med. 2012 Dec 1;19(6):384-8.

BackgroundIn hospital emergency services, the prevalence of alcohol-related admissions is about 20%, of which 80% display elevated γ-glutamyl transpeptidase or carbohydrate deficient transferring (CDT). We investigated whether intensive case management (ICM) that included cognitive behavior-oriented brief intervention could decrease patient morbidity.MethodsThis study was a 13-month, prospective, exhaustive, longitudinal, controlled trial in an emergency department. Readmission rate of patients previously admitted to the emergency services for the same reason was chosen as an indicator of efficacy.ResultsA total of 203 patients were enrolled in the study: 106 in the intervention group, who received ICM, and 97 in the control group, who received standard care. In the control group, 59% of the patients were readmitted for the same reason in the 1-year follow-up against 32% in the intervention group. Thus, the 1-year readmission rate decreased by 45%.ConclusionICM in an emergency ward can successfully treat patients with alcohol problems and reduce relapse rate. Alcohol intervention should be part of the standard care in alcohol-related emergency admissions. It treats the alcohol problem early, effectively, and at low cost, and can have a major impact on long-term patient health.

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