Self-Report of Alcohol Use for Pain in a Multi-Ethnic Community Sample

Abstract

This study examined the occurrence of alcohol use to manage pain in community-dwelling adults with tooth pain, jaw joint/face pain, and arthritis. Race/ethnicity, sex, and age were examined to determine their associations with alcohol use for pain. Community-dwelling adults from South Florida with tooth pain (n=1767), jaw joint/face pain (n=1199), or arthritis pain (n=1355) completed a structured telephone interview. Logistic regression models indicted that, similar to population rates, non-Hispanic Whites and males were the most likely to use alcohol to manage pain. In addition, alcohol use for pain was highest in younger adults. Individuals who self-managed oral pain with alcohol were more likely to use prescription and over-the-counter pain medications, but this association was not found for arthritis. Additional characteristics of individuals who self-medicated regardless of pain condition included greater pain frequency, depression, and higher levels of education. Being married was protective against the use of alcohol to manage pain symptoms. Use of alcohol for pain should be assessed during treatment evaluation so that physicians and other health care providers are aware of their patient’s use of alcohol and pain medication concomitantly, assess for psychosocial impairment, and make the appropriate referrals and adjustment to treatment. Perspective Self-medication of pain with alcohol is most common among younger non-Hispanic White males and associated with pain frequency, depression, and use of pain medications. Alcohol use for pain needs to be assessed so that health care providers can make appropriate referrals and adjustments to treatment.

Distress and drinking: Cross-cultural connections and contexts

“…------IJADR 1(1) ------80 & Randall, 2003;Morris, Stewart, & Ham, 2005;Schneier et al, 2010;Zimmermann et al, 2003), posttraumatic stress disorder or symptoms (Blume, Resor, Villanueva, & Braddy, 2009;Jacobson et al, 2008;McDevitt-Murphy et al, 2010), physical pain (Lawton & Simpson, 2009;Moos, Brennan, Schutte, & Moos, 2010;Riley & King, 2009), cumulative experience with stressful life events (Aseltine & Gore, 2000;Dawson, Grant, & Ruan, 2005;Lloyd & Turner, 2008), after-effects of military combat (Jacobsen et al, 2008;Šakušić et al, 2009;Wilk et al, 2010), after-effects of disasters and terrorism (Boscarino, Adams, & Galea, 2006;Grieger, Fullerton, Ursano, & Reeves, 2003;Hasin, Keyes, Hatzenbuehler, Aharonovich, & Alderson, 2007), after-effects of childhood trauma (Sarin & NolenHoeksema, 2010;Wilsnack, Wilsnack, Kristjanson, Vogeltanz-Holm, & Harris, 2004;Wu et al, 2010), after-effects of assault and criminal victimization (Kaysen et al, 2007;Ullman, Filipas, Townsend, & Starzynski, 2005;Vaughn et al, 2010) and chronic negative emotions arising for other reasons (Costanzo et al, 2007;Dorfman, Trokel, Lincoln, & Mehta, 2010;Witkiewitz & Villarroel, 2009). Links between chronic stress and chronic drinking patterns are found more consistently than links between acute but time-limited stress and immediate drinking responses (Armeli, Todd, & Mohr, 2005;Helzer, Badger, Searles, Rose, & Mongeon, 2006;Skaff, Finney, & Moos, 1999; but see also …”

Physical Pain in Alcohol-Dependent Patients Entering Treatment in Poland—Prevalence and Correlates

“…For example, national surveys in both the United States and Singapore found that those with a chronic pain condition were approximately twice as likely to meet criteria for alcohol dependence as those without (Subramaniam et al, 2013;Von Korff et al, 2005). Beyond diagnosable alcohol problems, the use of alcohol is commonly considered a useful pain self-management strategy, with more than 25% of individuals with various pain symptoms reporting the use of ethanol for the purposes of analgesia (Riley & King, 2009).…”

Alcohol consumption after health deterioration in older adults: a mixed-methods study

“…diagnosis with an LTC or hospitalisation) they are more likely to reduce their alcohol intake or abstain (7,11,25,26). However, drinking behaviour is not always modified in response to ill health, with reports of stable alcohol consumption or even increased drinking, for example where alcohol is used to help manage chronic pain or heart disease (27,28). Recent cross-sectional research in England did not identify comorbidity (with a range of LTCs) to be associated with alcohol consumption in older adults (29).…”