Validity of the Lifetime Drinking History: A Comparison of Retrospective and Prospective Quantity-Frequency Measures

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ABSTRACT. Objective: Prior research on predictors of problem drinking has been limited because of an inability to attribute an unambiguous environmental explanation to observed fi ndings. Using a prospective co-twin control design, we examined the extent to which a history of psychiatric symptoms exerts an environmental infl uence on problem drinking in midlife that is unconfounded by genetic underpinnings. Method: Participants were 367 complete male twin pairs (208 monozygotic, 159 dizygotic) from the Vietnam Era Twin Registry who were assessed in midlife as part of the Family Twin Study (M age = 51.4 years, SD = 2.8). Twin pairs who were concordant for a lifetime diagnosis of an alcohol use disorder (AUD) in 1992 were selected for participation and were reinterviewed in 2001 to measure symptoms of AUD (i.e., problem drinking) since the prior assessment (past 10 years). Results: Within-pair differences in lifetime symptom counts of several psychiatric disorders measured in 1992 (i.e., major depression, dysthymia, generalized anxiety disorder, panic disorder, antisocial personality, mania, and posttraumatic stress disorder) were signifi cantly associated with within-pair differences in AUD symptoms in the subsequent 10 years. Conclusions: A history of psychiatric problems, particularly one marked by internalizing symptoms, appears to be linked to problem drinking in midlife above and beyond the confounding infl uence of genetic effects and underscores the potential value of integrated interventions for comorbidity to address problem drinking among individuals during this period of the life course. (J. Stud. Alcohol Drugs, 74, 136-140, 2013)

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 75%

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Psychiatric Morbidity is Linked to Problem Drinking in Midlife Among Alcohol-Dependent Men: A Co-Twin Control Study

Blonigen

Burroughs

Haber³

et al. 2013

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“…To address this gap in the literature, our research group has been assessing the course of alcohol dependence in a sample of 50-to 60-year-old veterans from the Vietnam Era Twin Registry (VETR). Using the Lifetime Drinking History questionnaire-a retrospective report of alcohol use with impressive reliability and validity (Jacob et al, 2006;Koenig et al, 2009)-each year between drinking onset and current age was coded for alcohol-dependence status. Using this approach, we identifi ed several drinking trajectories that were interpretable and consistent with typologies discussed in the clinical literature (Jacob et al, 2005).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Course of Alcohol Dependence Among Vietnam Combat Veterans and Nonveteran Controls

Jacob¹,

Blonigen²,

Koenig³

et al. 2010

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ABSTRACT. Objective: Identifying developmental trajectories of alcohol use is fundamental in building theories of alcoholism etiology and course. The purpose of this study was to replicate and generalize our previous fi nding that had been based on a twin sample drawn from the Vietnam Era Twin Registry. In this study, we made use of a nontwin sample of Vietnam veterans drawn from the Vietnam Era Study-a 25-year follow-up of the Vietnam Drug User Returns project that assessed the long-term medical and psychiatric consequences of substance abuse or dependence in Vietnam. Method: Alcohol-related behaviors and psychiatric status were assessed in a sample of 839 individuals that comprised 323 veterans who tested positive for drugs (i.e., opiates, barbiturates, or amphetamines) on discharge from Vietnam, 319 veterans who tested negative for drugs at that time, and a nonveteran control sample (n = 197). Individuals with a lifetime diagnosis of alcohol dependence (n = 293) were selected for further analysis. Using detailed life history charts, in-person structured interviews were conducted, which entailed retrospective reports covering the 25 years since the 1972 survey. Measures of alcohol and drug use as well as psychiatric symptoms were obtained by assessing each year of the follow-up interval, beginning with 1972. Results: Using latent growth mixture modeling, a four-class model was identifi ed with trajectories that were parallel to those identifi ed in our previous studies based on the Vietnam Era Twin Registry: severe chronic alcoholics, severe nonchronic alcoholics, late-onset alcoholics, and young-adult alcoholics. Conclusions: Present fi ndings provide additional support for the replicability and generalizability of meaningful differences in the course of alcoholism from early adulthood to midlife. (J. Stud. Alcohol Drugs, 71, 629-639, 2010)

“…The measure was originally developed by Skinner and Sheu (1982) and was then modified by Jacob (1998;Koenig et al, 2009). In 2001, it was administered as a structured telephone interview in which the first phase began at the age of first regular drinking or first intoxication, and subsequent phases began at the age of a significant change in alcohol consumption.…”

Section: Predictor: Alcohol Dependence Historymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…On average, participants reported 4.1 phases (SD = 1.4) in their lifetime with a mean length of 7.9 years (SD = 4.1). The LDH has been shown to be a reliable and valid instrument for characterizing drinking over the life course (Gladsjo et al, 1992;Jacob et al, 2006;Koenig et al, 2009). These data were transformed into person-year data using a (site-developed) SAS (SAS Institute Inc., Cary, NC) program so that drinking was characterized for every year of age.…”

Section: Predictor: Alcohol Dependence Historymentioning

confidence: 99%

Residual Effects: Young Adult Diagnostic Drinking Predicts Late-Life Health Outcomes

Haber¹,

Harris²,

Burroughs

et al. 2016

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ABSTRACT. Objective: This study examined the residual effects of young adult diagnostic drinking on health outcomes four decades later in late life. Results were differentiated by drinking status during midlife. Method: A subsample of Vietnam Era Twin Registry members, all of whom had a lifetime diagnosis of alcohol dependence, was grouped according to life span drinking patterns as assessed by the Lifetime Drinking History interview in 2001. Those drinking at diagnostic levels (endorsing three or more alcohol dependence symptoms) before age 30 were then grouped based on their midlife drinking status (i.e., drinking at diagnostic levels vs. at minimal [nonsymptomatic] levels throughout midlife). Linear (or logistic) regression models were used to examine the association between life span drinking patterns and health outcomes in late life (about age 64). Results: Those who drank at diagnostic levels in young adulthood and in midlife exhibited significant health liabilities on every late-life health measure; those who drank at diagnostic levels for 5 or more years in young adulthood but drank only at minimal levels or not at all in midlife still exhibited similar liabilities on most late-life health measures. Only those individuals who drank diagnostically for less than 5 years in young adulthood displayed normal levels of late-life health. Conclusions: This study identified residual effects resulting from persistent young adult diagnostic drinking (5 or more years) that resulted in negative health outcomes in late life even after decades of remission. There is a distal but surprisingly strong association between persistent early life diagnostic drinking and late-life morbidity. (J. Stud. Alcohol Drugs, 77, 859-867, 2016)