Chick J
University of Edinburgh Department of Psychiatry, Royal Edinburgh Hospital.
Health Bull (Edinb). 1997 May;55(3):134-9.
General hospitals in Scotland have experienced a steep rise in discharge rates for alcohol-related diagnoses. This cannot fully be explained by changes in drinking in the general population, a cohort of heavy drinkers, changes in diagnostic practice, or the closure of beds in psychiatric hospitals. Moreover, there has been an increase in deaths from alcoholic liver disease, not easily explained by change in diagnostic practice or a putative cohort of polysubstance abusers with viral hepatitis. Changes in society such as greater income disparity and greater social isolation may contribute and have not been off-set by improvements in availability or outcome of treatment.
苏格兰的综合医院中，与酒精相关诊断的出院率急剧上升。这无法完全用普通人群饮酒习惯的变化、一群重度饮酒者、诊断实践的改变或精神病院床位的关闭来解释。此外，酒精性肝病导致的死亡人数有所增加，这很难用诊断实践的变化或一群同时滥用多种药物且患有病毒性肝炎的人来解释。社会变化，如收入差距加大和社会隔离加剧，可能是导致这一情况的原因，而且这些变化并未因治疗可及性或治疗效果的改善而得到抵消。
