Objective: Though heavy drinkers and patients with alcohol dependence make use of the ambulance more frequently as compared with the general population, there are few data on the alcohol-related use of the emergency department (ED) in Japan.
Method: A cross sectional study was conducted. 170 patients with alcohol dependence in one clinic and 306 primary care patients across two clinics provided demographic data and answered some questions about the use of emergency ambulance services over the age of 20. The questions asked included whether use of the ambulance caused injuries, as well as AUDIT-C (primary care patients only). In this study, multiple logistic regression analysis was used.
Result: The use of emergency ambulance services by patients with alcohol dependence was 4.68 times more than primary care patients, and the occurrence of ambulance-caused injuries was 6.03 times higher, as determined by multiple logistic regression. Among primary care patients, AUDIT-C positive patients (male; 5 points or more, female; 3 points or more) were 37 (12.2%), and the occurrence of ambulance-caused injuries was 3.32 times higher.
Conclusion: Like with other countries, in Japan, heavy drinkers and patients with alcohol dependence lead to a significant increase in the use of emergency ambulance services as well as ambulance-caused injuries.