JAMA study on Alcohol Use Disorder–Related Mortality During the Pandemic

 JAMA has this important research letter which details the increase in alcohol use disorder-mortality during the pandemic in the US. A sample from the findings:  

There were 343 384 AUD-related deaths between 2012 and 2021. We stratified these deaths into decedent groups by age (25 to 44 years, 56 985 [16.6%]; 45 to 64 years, 192 346 [56.0%]; and ≥65 years, 94 053 [27.4%]) and by sex (266 755 men [77.7%]). By comparing observed and projected mortality rates, we noticed a surge in AUD mortality both overall and among all subgroups during the pandemic (Figure and Table). The observed AUD-related mortality rates increased by 24.79% in 2020 and 21.95% in 2021 vs the projected rates. Increased mortality rates were evident even when AUD was set as the underlying cause of death (30.74% in 2020 vs 28.77% in 2021).

.... Younger persons, particularly those aged 25 to 44 years, had the steepest upward trend. The small proportion of COVID-19–related deaths suggests that excess deaths were more likely attributable to indirect effects of the pandemic such as stay-at-home policies and reduced medical and social resources for patients with AUD.

Cheers 

Colin