History of Delirium Tremens in AUD Patients in Treatment: Relationship to AUD Severity and Other Factors

Figures & data

Table 1 Background Characteristics, Health Related Measures and Psychological Measures for AUD Patients That Had or Had Not Experienced Delirium Tremens

		Experience of Delirium Tremens		p-value
		No	Yes
		n = 86 (76%)	n = 27 (24%)
Demographics
Age (years)	Median (IQR)	52.7 (44.0–58.1)	54.3 (49.6–57.5)	0.284^a
Sex (female)	n (%)	29 (34)	3 (11)	0.023^a
Educational level (any university degree)	n (%)	22 (33)	2 (10)	0.033^a
Psychiatric comorbidities
BDI-II^b score	Median (IQR)	15.0 (8.0–25.0)	19.0 (11.7–29.0)	0.195^c
Life-time depressive disorder	n (%)	60 (71)	21 (78)	0.476^a
Life-time suicide attempt	n (%)	19 (22)	12 (44)	0.023^a
Childhood trauma experience	n (%)	46 (72)	15 (68)	0.742^a
Adulthood trauma experience	n (%)	39 (61)	15 (68)	0.544^a
PTSD	n (%)	10 (12)	9 (33)	0.016^d
Sleep related parameters
Below SCI^e cut-off indicating insomnia	n (%)	33 (53.2)	11 (52.4)	0.947^a
Dropped out of treatment	n (%)	22 (26)	12 (46)	0.050^a

Notes: ^aChi-squared; ^bBeck Depression Inventory version II; ^cMann–Whitney U test; ^dFisher’s exact; ^eSleep Condition Indicator, bold numbers indicate p-values that are significant (p-value < 0.05).

Table 2 Alcohol Related Measures of the AUD Patients That Had or Had Not Experienced Delirium Tremens

		Experience of Delirium Tremens		p-value
		No	Yes
		n = 87 (76%)	n = 27 (24%)
Parents with alcohol problem	n (%)	42 (49)	19 (70)	0.050^a
Age at first drink (years)	Median (IQR)	15 (14–16)	14 (13–15)	0.046^b
Duration of problematic drinking (years)	Median (IQR)	12 (6–20)	22 (16–30)	<0.001^b
SRE^c early (number of drinks)	Median (IQR)	5.0 (3.7–7.3)	6.8 (4.9–7.9)	0.111^b
SRE^c heavy (number of drinks)	Median (IQR)	10.8 (8.4–16.1)	16.8 (11.3–30.0)	0.025^b
SRE^c recent (number of drinks)	Median (IQR)	8.8 (7.0–12.0)	12.5 (9.3–18.0)	0.006^b
Severity of Dependence Scale (score)	Median (IQR)	10 (8–12)	11 (9–13)	0.111^b

Notes: ^aChi-squared for categorical variables; ^bMann–Whitney U test for continuous variables; ^cself rated effects of alcohol, bold numbers indicate p-values that are significant (p-value < 0.05).

Table 3 Logistic Regression of Variables Related to Delirium Tremens Among the Treated AUD Patients in the Study (N=114)

	Reference	Unadjusted OR (95% CI)	p-values	Adjusted^a OR (95% CI)	p-values
Demographics
Sex	Male	0.25 (0.07–0.88)	0.032	0.30 (0.06–1.47)	0.137
Educational level	No university degree	0.21 (0.04–0.99)	0.048	0.25 (0.05–1.21)	0.086
Psychiatric comorbidities
PTSD	No	3.80 (1.35–10.72)	0.012	5.71 (1.34–24.31)	0.018
Suicide attempt	No	2.82 (1.13–7.04)	0.026	2.38 (0.77–7.32)	0.131
Dropped out of treatment	No	2.45 (0.99–6.11)	0.053	1.72 (0.57,5.20)	0.338
Alcohol related problems
Parents with alcohol problem	No	2.49 (0.98–6.29)	0.054	2.63 (0.87–7.97)	0.087
Age at first drink	Continuous	0.82 (0.66–1.02)	0.074	0.85 (0.65–1.10)	0.210
Duration of problematic drinking (years)	Continuous	1.08 (1.03–1.13)	0.001	1.06 (1.01–1.11)	0.032
SRE^b early	Continuous	1.07 (0.93–1.24)	0.349	1.02 (0.87–1.19)	0.794
SRE^b heavy	Continuous	1.07 (1.01–1.14)	0.023	1.06 (0.99–1.13)	0.068
SRE^b recent	Continuous	1.07 (1.00–1.15)	0.041	1.06 (0.98–1.13)	0.122

Notes: ^aAdjusted for sex and level of education (sex adjusted for level of education, level of education adjusted for sex); ^bself rated effects of alcohol, bold numbers indicate p-values that are significant (p-value < 0.05).