Final Recommendation Statement:

Reducing Unhealthy Alcohol Use

Final Recommendation Statement: Screening and Behavioral Counseling Interventions to Reduce Unhealthy Alcohol Use in Adolescents and Adults

The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force released today a final recommendation statement on screening and behavioral counseling interventions to reduce unhealthy alcohol use in adolescents and adults. The Task Force found that clinicians should screen all adults for unhealthy alcohol use and offer brief counseling to those who drink above recommended limits. It also found that more research is needed to make a recommendation for adolescents. To view the recommendation and the evidence on which it is based, please go here. The final recommendation statement can also be found in the November 13 online issue of JAMA.

The Final Recommendation Statement Is Available

FINAL RECOMMENDATION SUMMARY

See the full statement

Population

Recommendation

Grade

Adults 18 years or older, including pregnant women

The USPSTF recommends screening for unhealthy alcohol use in primary care settings in adults 18 years or older, including pregnant women, and providing persons engaged in risky or hazardous drinking with brief behavioral counseling interventions to reduce unhealthy alcohol use.

Adolescents aged 12 to 17 years

The USPSTF concludes that the current evidence is insufficient to assess the balance of benefits and harms of screening and brief behavioral counseling interventions for alcohol use in primary care settings in adolescents aged 12 to 17 years.

WHY THIS MATTERS

"In this final recommendation, the Task Force is calling on clinicians to screen all adults and provide counseling to those who drink beyond recommended limits,” says Task Force member Carol Mangione, M.D., M.S.P.H. “We found that screening and brief counseling in primary care can help reduce unhealthy alcohol use.”