Hazardous and harmful alcohol consumption among non-psychotic psychiatric clinic attendees in Oman

Although interest in substance abuse in psychiatric patients has received increasing attention, there is scant study of hazardous and harmful drinking patterns in Arab/Islamic societies where socio-cultural patterning imposes total abstinence on drinking. However recent globalization has eroded such prescription. An aim of this study is to examine the severity of harmful and hazardous drinking in Oman. From Omani nationals seeking psychiatric consultation, an assessment of alcohol dependence or hazardous or harmful drinking was elicited using the World Health Organization's assessment measure, the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT). Clinical interviews were also conducted to ascertain the severity of alcohol dependence. The results from this convenience sample of patients suggest the presence of hazardous and harmful alcohol consumption among non-psychotic attendees seeking psychiatric consultation. The clinical interview revealed that 49 patients of the consenting patients (n=56) have persistent and clinically significant alcohol intoxication. Fifty patients scored in the pathological range of indices of harmful and hazardous alcohol consumption. There was no relationship between the socio-demographic variables and indices of AUDIT. The result is discussed in terms of the speculated increase in harmful and hazardous drinking among Omanis and the inherent limitation of undertaking a study where the topic of interest is socio-culturally abhorred.