Patterns of Alcohol Use in Hispanic Individuals with TBI over the Ten Years Post-Injury: A Model Systems Study

Juan Carlos Arango-Lasprilla; Jack D Watson; Miriam J Rodríguez; Daniela Ramos-Usuga; Paul B Perrin

doi:10.3390/jpm14010105

Patterns of Alcohol Use in Hispanic Individuals with TBI over the Ten Years Post-Injury: A Model Systems Study

J Pers Med. 2024 Jan 18;14(1):105. doi: 10.3390/jpm14010105.

Authors

Juan Carlos Arango-Lasprilla¹, Jack D Watson¹, Miriam J Rodríguez², Daniela Ramos-Usuga³, Paul B Perrin^{4

5}

Affiliations

¹ Department of Psychology, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA 23284, USA.
² School of Public Health, Department of Health and Wellness Design, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN 47408, USA.
³ Biomedical Research Doctorate Program, Department of Cell Biology and Histology, University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU), 48940 Leioa, Spain.
⁴ School of Data Science, Department of Psychology, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA 22904, USA.
⁵ Central Virginia Veterans Affairs Health Care System, Richmond, VA 23249, USA.

Abstract

The study's aim was to examine alcohol consumption patterns and predictors of consumption across time among Hispanics with traumatic brain injury (TBI) in the U.S. within ten years post-injury. This longitudinal cohort study included 1342 Hispanic individuals (77.6% males) from the multi-site, longitudinal TBI Model Systems (TBIMS) database. The main outcome measures were consumption information, demographic, and injury characteristics. Across the full sample, alcohol consumption variables generally demonstrated quadratic movement characterized by an initial increase followed by a plateau or slight decrease over the ten years post-injury. The predictors of higher consumption were being men, single, with a history of excessive alcohol use, with a nonviolent mechanism of injury, shorter duration of PTA, and higher levels of education. Participants had a greater number of 5+ drinks/episode occurrences in the past month if they were men and had had a greater number of 5+ drinks/episode occurrences in the month before injury. There was no differential change in alcohol consumption over time as a function of these predictors. This study identified a profile of at-risk Hispanics with TBI for increased alcohol consumption. These individuals should be identified and targeted for early evidence-based alcohol intervention after TBI when results might be most favorable.

Keywords: alcohol; hispanics; substance use; traumatic brain injury.

Grants and funding

This research was funded by the National Institute on Disability, Independent Living and Rehabilitation Research (NIDILRR) and by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.