Alcohol Withdrawal Syndrome stage 2 version 1
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Can risk stratification for alcohol withdrawal syndrome reduce hospital admissions?
IRAS ID
212732
Contact name
George Benson
Contact email
Duration of Study in the UK
1 years, 4 months, 8 days
Research summary
Can risk stratification for alcohol withdrawal reduce hospital admissions? The financial impact of alcohol on the Scottish NHS is estimated at £3.5 billion per year. A high proportion of cost is associated with hospital treatment and patients with an alcohol use disorder (AUD). AUD`s refer to people who drink above the governments recommended limits in a hazardous, harmful or dependent pattern. Although all AUD`s may cause ill health, the majority of primary attendances at emergency departments are people who have alcohol dependence and at risk of severe alcohol withdrawal syndrome (SAWS). AWS symptoms range from mild, moderate to severe. In most cases people with mild to moderate symptoms do not require treatment. Currently there is no guidance to support emergency department staff in identifying high risk groups who require hospital treatment. Therefore, the majority of these patients are admitted to a hospital bed and discharged within 24 hours. Admission increases the risk of inappropriate treatment, underutilisation of community alcohol services and impacts the hospitals ability to achieve the government waiting time target.
Emergency departments staff would benefit from a risk stratification tool to support them in the decision to discharge patients at low risk of SAWS from the department. The tool would incorporate factors identified as predisposing a person with alcohol dependence syndrome (ADS) to SAWS. There are 3 tools; the AUDIT-PC, AUDIT plus 2 blood markers and PAWSS currently used for the purpose of risk assessment in this group of patients. Therefore, a retrospective cohort study will be undertaken with data abstracted from paper and electronic records from patients admitted with ADS over a 2 month period to Glasgow Royal Infirmary and Queen Elizabeth University Hospital. The data will be analysed against the 3 tools to assess their sensitivity and specificity in predicting SAWS in this group of patients.
REC name
West of Scotland REC 3
REC reference
16/WS/0194
Date of REC Opinion
23 Sep 2016
REC opinion
Favourable Opinion