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. 2020 Dec;14(6):e284-e286.
doi: 10.1097/ADM.0000000000000735.

The Changing Landscape of Alcohol Use and Alcohol Use Disorder During the COVID-19 Pandemic - Perspectives of Early Career Professionals in 16 Countries

Tanya Calvey  1 , Florian Scheibein, Noha Ahmed Saad, Tomohiro Shirasaka, Lisa Dannatt, M J Stowe, Bigya Shah, Venkata Lakshmi Narasimha, Angelo Bruschi, Eric Peyron, Joy Louise Gumikiriza-Onoria, Abhishek Ghosh, Sagun Ballav Pant, Anne Yee, Woraphat Ratta-Apha, Ramyadarshni Vadivel, Kristiana Siste, Tanay Maiti, Saïd Boujraf, Paolo Grandinetti, Nirvana Morgan, Sidharth Arya
Affiliations

The Changing Landscape of Alcohol Use and Alcohol Use Disorder During the COVID-19 Pandemic - Perspectives of Early Career Professionals in 16 Countries

Tanya Calvey et al. J Addict Med. 2020 Dec.

Abstract

: Alcohol use is a major risk factor for infectious disease and reduction of harms associated with alcohol consumption are essential during times of humanitarian crises, such as the COVID-19 pandemic. As a network of early career professionals working in the area of addiction medicine, we provide our views with regards to national actions related to reducing alcohol-related harm and providing care for people with alcohol use disorder during COVID-19. We believe that COVID-19 related measures have affected alcohol consumption in the majority of countries represented in this commentary. Examples of these changes include changes in alcohol consumption patterns, increases in cases of alcohol withdrawal syndrome, disruptions in access to medical care for alcohol use disorder and increases in illegal production of alcohol. Our members urge that treatment for acute and severe conditions due to substance use should be considered as essential services in times of humanitarian crises like COVID-19.

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References

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