Alcohol Electronic Screening and Brief Intervention: A Community Guide Systematic Review

Kristin A. Tansil, Marissa B. Esser, Paramjit Sandhu, Jeffrey A. Reynolds, Randy W. Elder, Rebecca S. Williamson, Sajal K. Chattopadhyay, Michele K. Bohm, Robert D. Brewer, Lela R. McKnight-Eily, Daniel W. Hungerford, Traci L. Toomey, Ralph W. Hingson, Jonathan E. Fielding

Research output: Contribution to journalReview articlepeer-review

48 Scopus citations

Abstract

Context Excessive drinking is responsible for one in ten deaths among working-age adults in the U.S. annually. Alcohol screening and brief intervention is an effective but underutilized intervention for reducing excessive drinking among adults. Electronic screening and brief intervention (e-SBI) uses electronic devices to deliver key elements of alcohol screening and brief intervention, with the potential to expand population reach. Evidence acquisition Using Community Guide methods, a systematic review of the scientific literature on the effectiveness of e-SBI for reducing excessive alcohol consumption and related harms was conducted. The search covered studies published from 1967 to October 2011. A total of 31 studies with 36 study arms met quality criteria and were included in the review. Analyses were conducted in 2012. Evidence synthesis Twenty-four studies (28 study arms) provided results for excessive drinkers only and seven studies (eight study arms) reported results for all drinkers. Nearly all studies found that e-SBI reduced excessive alcohol consumption and related harms: nine study arms reported a median 23.9% reduction in binge-drinking intensity (maximum drinks/binge episode) and nine study arms reported a median 16.5% reduction in binge-drinking frequency. Reductions in drinking measures were sustained for up to 12 months. Conclusions According to Community Guide rules of evidence, e-SBI is an effective method for reducing excessive alcohol consumption and related harms among intervention participants. Implementation of e-SBI could complement population-level strategies previously recommended by the Community Preventive Services Task Force for reducing excessive drinking (e.g., increasing alcohol taxes and regulating alcohol outlet density).

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)801-811
Number of pages11
JournalAmerican journal of preventive medicine
Volume51
Issue number5
DOIs
StatePublished - Nov 1 2016

Bibliographical note

Publisher Copyright:
© 2016

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