Prevalence and associated factors of alcohol use patterns among university students in Uganda

Abstract

Introduction majority of alcohol use pattern studies among university students are from developed countries. Information about the different alcohol use patterns and their correlates among university students in sub-Saharan Africa is limited. The aim of this study was to examine the prevalence and cardinal demographic and psychosocial factors associated with specific alcohol use patterns among Ugandan university students. Methods a cross section study conducted over 5-months among university students using a standardized socio-demographic questionnaire screened for alcohol use problems, depression symptoms and academic stress using the alcohol use disorders identification test (AUDIT), self-reporting questionnaire (SRQ-20) and the higher education stress inventory (HESI) respectively. Multivariate multinomial regression models were used to determine factors independently associated with a specific alcohol use pattern with low-risk drinkers as the reference group. Results a thousand out of 1200 students completed all study requirements for which 60% were males; median age was 22.3 (SD=2.36). The prevalence estimates of any alcohol use, low-risk drinking, heavy episodic drinking and alcohol misuse were 31%, 17.3%, 4.5% and 8.9% respectively. In comparison to low-risk drinkers, students reporting heavy episodic drinking were more likely to report high levels of academic stress (P-value <0.10). Those with alcohol misuse were more likely to be males and with significant depression symptoms (P-value ≤0.05). Non-alcohol users were more likely to report high levels of academic stress (P-value ≤0.05). Conclusion the prevalence of maladaptive alcohol use patterns is high among Ugandan university students. Integrating peer led psychological interventions into student health services is desperately needed.

The prevalence and factors associated with mental disorders in a community setting in central Uganda

“…We reported a high prevalence of AUD in the study population. Our findings are in keeping with previous studies that have documented high prevalence of consumption of alcohol in Uganda [ 48 – 50 ] with figures as high as 40% in one study [ 51 ]. These findings are in keeping with those of a meta-analysis of the prevalence of AUD (40%) in SSA by Olawole et al (2018) [ 52 ].…”

Exploring ecosocial contexts of alcohol use and misuse during the COVID-19 pandemic among urban refugee youth in Kampala, Uganda: Multi-method findings

“…Our findings corroborate previous research on stressful life events and discrimination as motivations for increased alcohol use ( Keyes et al, 2011 ; Choi et al, 2014 ; Kamulegeya et al, 2020 ; Corbin et al, 2013 ) For instance, prior research found that stress was a key motivator for heavy episodic drinking among university students in Uganda ( Kamulegeya et al, 2020 ). Our qualitative findings corroborate this and suggest that alcohol mis/use may serve as a stress coping mechanism for refugee youth.…”

Limited negative effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on mental health measures of Ghanaian university students

“…While we maintain that most studies exploring university student stress and health outcomes fail to include sub-Saharan African students, there are notable exceptions ( Amponsah and Owolabi, 2011 ; Auerbach et al, 2016 ; Bam et al, 2014 ; Edjah et al, 2020 ; Kamulegeya et al, 2020 ; Misigo, 2015 ) where information that included Kenyan, Nigerian, Ugandan, and Ghanaian students has been published. Studies referring to Ghanaian students have been cited throughout this discussion section, but in terms of non-Ghanaian studies, in Kenya, female students reported higher stress, but a different survey instrument was used ( Misigo, 2015 ).…”

“…One study surveyed Nigerian students ( Auerbach et al, 2016 ); however, results by country were not listed. In Uganda, of the 1,000 students surveyed, 30.5% reported the presence of depression symptoms and 40.8% indicated high levels of academic stress ( Kamulegeya et al, 2020 ). Unfortunately, the tools used to survey the Ugandan students differed from the current study, so direct comparisons are difficult to make.…”