Drinking patterns and alcohol related admissions of acute medical patients in Stracathro Hospital.

A study has been made of the drinking patterns of male and female patients admitted to the acute medical wards of a rural district general hospital. Thirty-four per cent of males and 18.5 per cent of females were regular drinkers, while 54 per cent of males and 70.5 per cent of females never, or rarely drank. The young drank more frequently than the elderly. Alcohol ingestion was the determining factor in 7.9 per cent of the male admissions and 7.5 per cent of the female admissions. Drug overdosage was the single most common associated problem.