Alcohol use and in-hospital complications in patients aged 80 years and older: a multicentre observational study in Spain.

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Iván Fernández-Castro, Victoria Lobo-Antuña, Sonia Martín-Rodríguez, and 11 more This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-8566710/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Published Journal Publication published 02 Apr, 2026 Read the published version in Aging Clinical and Experimental Research → Version 1 posted 15 You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract Background Alcohol consumption among adults aged ≥ 80 remains understudied, despite their vulnerability to alcohol-related harm. We aimed to assess the prevalence of alcohol use and AUD and to examine associations with in-hospital complications in very elderly hospitalized patients. Methods This was a prospective, multicenter observational study conducted from June 2022 to July 2023 across 19 hospitals. Consecutive patients aged ≥ 80 admitted to Internal Medicine departments were included. Alcohol consumption was ascertained via structured interview and screening tools (AUDIT, CAGE). Data on comorbidities, medications, functional status, laboratory parameters, and in-hospital complications were collected. Logistic regression identified independent predictors of complications. Results A total of 916 patients (median age 86 years; 54% female) were analysed. Active alcohol use at admission was reported by 28%, and 8% met AUDIT criteria for AUD. Documentation of alcohol use in medical records was present in 36%. Overall, 47% developed at least one complication; withdrawal syndrome (9%) and insomnia (36%) were significantly more frequent among active drinkers. Independent predictors of complications included AUDIT ≥ 8 (OR 3.8; 95%CI 1.8–8.3), in-hospital benzodiazepine use (OR 2.3; 95%CI 1.7–3.2), neuroleptic use (OR 4.1; 95%CI 2.9–5.7), and discharge diagnoses of infection or neurological disease. Conclusions Alcohol consumption is common but under-recognised in patients aged ≥ 80 and is associated with increased risk of in‐hospital complications. Routine screening with AUDIT in this group may identify high-risk individuals and inform preventive strategies to mitigate adverse hospital outcomes. very elderly adults alcohol consumption alcohol use disorder in-hospital complications screening Figures Figure 1 INTRODUCTION Alcohol is the most widely accepted addictive and psychoactive substance globally [ 1 ]. Its consumption dates back thousands of years, originating with the advent of agriculture, and today it is deeply embedded in social routines and traditions across all continents. Its role in the development of up to 200 health problems is well established, alongside the psychosocial issues associated with its use [ 2 ]. However, while the general population is frequently studied, older adults—particularly those aged over 80 years— are underrepresented in the literature, despite being potentially more vulnerable to organic damage due to alcohol consumption [ 3 , 4 ]. The elderly population in Europe has grown significantly, with those over 80 years constituting 6% of the population in 2023, up from 2,7% two decades earlier [ 5 ]. This demographic shift underscores the importance of addressing age-specific health determinants, including alcohol use. Older adults often present specific challenges due to comorbidities, polypharmacy, and age-related physiological changes that amplify the risks associated with alcohol [ 6 , 7 ]. Alcohol consumption among older adults is often underestimated in clinical settings, by patients, families, and healthcare providers [ 8 ]. Misconceptions about drinking habits in the elderly, along with the belief that its impact is negligible, have resulted in insufficient screening and intervention efforts. However, the available data suggest a different reality, for instance, the 2020 European Health Survey reported that 30% of individuals over 85 years had consumed alcohol in the last year [ 9 ], although there is lack of data regarding the impact of this consumption on health. Moreover, during hospital admissions, a high percentage of very elderly patients experience complications such as psychomotor agitation or hallucinations, whose origin is often multifactorialand could be linked to alcohol past or active consumption. Thus, we designed the present study with the aim of quantifying alcohol consumption, evaluating the prevalence of alcohol use disorders and clarifying the potential implications of alcohol use on the health of elderly patients admitted to internal medicine departments across Spain. By examining the interplay between alcohol use, disease progression, clinical outcomes and complications during hospitalization, we aim to shed light on an often overlooked yet critical public health issue. MATERIALS AND METHODS For this purpose, a national multi-centre, prospective and observational study was carried out between June 2022 and July 2023, promoted by the Alcohol and other Drugs Work Group of Spanish Society of Internal Medicine (SEMI). Nineteen hospitals across Spain participated in it, with the aim of including a representative sample of entire society, thus avoiding possible bias due to idiosyncratic consumption patterns of different territories. This study adheres to the ethical standards of the Declaration of Helsinki, received approval from ethics committees of all participating hospitals, and written informed consent was obtained from all patients prior to inclusion. Data collection was conducted using an anonymized online database. The inclusion criteria comprised all patients aged 80 years or older, who were admitted to internal medicine departments for any reason and provided written informed consent. Patients who declined to provide informed consent were excluded. Participant recruitment took place upon hospital admission. For each patient, data collection was divided into two parts. First, epidemiological, clinical, laboratory, and imaging variables were recorded. These included sex, age, length of hospitalization, reason for admission, prior treatments, pre-existing chronic conditions, treatments administered during hospitalization, and any medical complication occurring during the stay that could be related to alcohol consumption (such as disorientation, agitation, withdrawal syndrome, Wernicke’s encephalopathy, seizures, falls, insomnia, or death) [ 3 ]. Laboratory results and imaging findings were also documented. Regarding prior treatments, polypharmacy was defined as the regular use of five or more medications [ 10 ], while extreme polypharmacy was defined as the use of ten or more medications [ 11 ]. In the same way, we analysed the prior and in-hospital most used medications that can enhance alcohol consumption effects or be involved in similar potential complications, including benzodiazepines, neuroleptics, antidepressants, opioids, and anticoagulants. All these data were extracted from the electronic medical records of each patient. In a second step, an interview was conducted with the patient or their primary caregiver if the patient was unable to participate. The interview focused on current and past alcohol consumption and consumption patterns. Regarding past alcohol use, we recorded whether the patient had consumed alcohol for at least 10 consecutive years at any point in their life, and classified the consumption pattern as: never consumed, daily consumption with meals, intensive daily consumption, or occasional consumption. In this context, intensive consumption refers to what is traditionally known as “binge drinking” [ 12 ], while occasional consumption corresponds to low-risk drinking—defined as less than one standard drink unit (SDU) per day for women and less than two SDU per day for men—occurring sporadically and without a fixed daily or weekly pattern. We also inquired about alcohol use during the past year, categorizing it into the same groups as previously mentioned. Finally, we documented whether the patient reported active alcohol consumption at the time of hospital admission. If so, the number of SDUs consumed per day was recorded. It is important to note that, in Spain, one SDU is equivalent to 10 grams of ethanol [ 13 ]. Lastly, the AUDIT and CAGE tests were administered to identify alcohol-related disorders and dependence [ 14 , 15 ]. Additionally, patients' functional status was assessed using the Barthel´s Index and the Lawton and Brody´s Scale [ 16 , 17 ]; frailty was evaluated with the Frail-VIG Index [ 18 ]; cognitive impairment, including its presence and severity, was assessed using the Pfeiffer´s test [ 19 ]; and nutritional status and sarcopenia were evaluated using the CONUT Score and the SARC-F Scale [ 20 , 21 ], respectively. A descriptive analysis was conducted to examine the characteristics of the participants, using percentages for categorical variables, the mean and standard deviation (SD) for continuous variables with a normal distribution, and the median and interquartile range (IQR) for those with a non-normal distribution. For the comparison of qualitative variables, Pearson’s Chi-square test or Fisher’s exact test was used as appropriate. For continuous variables, Student’s t-test, Mann-Whitney U test, or Kruskal-Wallis test was employed, depending on the data distribution. A p-value of < 0.05 was considered statistically significant in all analyses. A binary logistic regression analysis was performed to evaluate the association between various factors and the occurrence of complications during hospitalization. The dependent variable was the presence of any in-hospital complication—including delirium, withdrawal syndrome, Wernicke's encephalopathy, seizures, status epilepticus, falls, and insomnia—, excluding death. A composite outcome was used because of these events share clinical and pathophysiological mechanisms—such as neurocognitive vulnerability and the effects of alcohol and psychoactive medications—and often coexist. Grouping them into a composite outcome enhanced statistical power while preserving their clinical interrelatedness and relevance. In contrast, death was excluded due to its multifactorial nature, particularly in a very elderly population (> 80 years) admitted for acute medical conditions. In such cases, death frequently results from a complex interplay of age-related vulnerability, pre-existing comorbidities, and the severity of the acute illness, rather than being directly attributable to modifiable clinical or functional variables such as alcohol use or medication exposure. Independent variables included those that had shown statistical significance ( p < 0.05) in the preceding univariate analysis, along with patient sex and active alcohol consumption, due to their clinical relevance to the study. Statistical analyses were performed using SPSS Statistics for Mac v25.0 (SPSS Inc, Chicago, IL, USA). RESULTS Patient’s characteristics: A total of 916 patients from 19 hospitals across different regions of Spain were included in the study (Fig. 1). The median age was 87 years (IQR = 7 years), and 54.4% (N = 498) of the participants were women. The median length of hospital stay was 10 days (IQR = 12 days). The characteristics of the studied population are summarized in Table 1 . Table 1 Characteristics of the study population. Women (498) Men (421) Total (N = 916) P Age 88 (IQR 7) 86 (IQR 7) 87 (IQR 7) < 0.001 Length of hospital stay 10 (IQR 12) 10 (IQR 11) 10 (IQR 12) 0.208 Pre-admission treatment Benzodiazepines 195 (39.3%) 125 (29.8%) 320 (34.9%) 0.003 Neuroleptics 117 (23.6%) 76 (18.1%) 193 (21.1%) 0.042 Antidepressants 177(35.7%) 88 (21.0%) 265 (28.9%) < 0.001 Anticoagulation 164 (33.1%) 153 (36.4%) 317 (34.6%) 0.286 Opioids 69 (13.9%) 51 (12.1%) 120 (13.1%) 0.429 Polypharmacy 434 (87.5%) 367 (87.4%) 801 (87.4%) 0.957 Extreme polypharmacy 212 (43.0%) 185 (44.5%) 397 (43.7%) 0.656 Comorbidities Cardiovascular 404 (81.5%) 337 (80.2%) 741 (80.9%) 0.642 Pulmonary 122 (24.6%) 146 (34.8%) 268 (29.3%) 0.001 Neurological 143 (28.8%) 127 (30.2%) 270 (29.5%) 0.630 Chronic kidney disease 157 (31.7%) 145 (34.5%) 302 (33.0%) 0.357 Diabetes mellitus 164 (33.1%) 148 (35.2%) 312 (34.1%) 0.478 Psychiatric disorders 70 (14.1%) 25 (6.0%) 95 (10.4%) 0.001 Active oncological disease 24 (4.8%) 62 (14.8%) 86 (9.4%) < 0.001 Chronic liver disease 11 (2.2%) 21 (5.0%) 32 (3.5%) 0.022 Treatment at hospital Benzodiazepines 199 (40.1%) 138 (32.9%) 337 (36.8%) 0.023 Neuroleptics 203 (40.9%) 156 (37.1%) 359 (39.2%) 0.242 Antidepressants 152 (30.6%) 74 (17.6%) 226 (24.7%) < 0.001 Opioids 95 (19.2%) 70 (16.7%) 165 (18.0%) 0.329 Discharge diagnosis Infectious disease 274 (55.2%) 229(54.5%) 503 (54.9%) 0.828 Cardiovascular disease 200 (40.3%) 167 (39.8%) 367 (40.1%) 0.863 Pulmonary disease 87 (17.5%) 107 (25.5%) 194 (21.2%) 0.003 Endocrinological disease 44 (8.9%) 33 (7.9%) 77 (8.4%) 0.582 Digestive disease 63 (12.7%) 61 (14.5%) 124 (13.5%) 0.422 Nephrological disease 113 (22.8%) 93 (22.1%) 206 (22.5%) 0.817 Neurological disease 76 (15.3%) 38 (9.0%) 114(12.4%) 0.004 General syndrome 50 (10.1%) 44 (10.5%) 94 (10.3%) 0.844 Alcohol-related diagnosis 6 (1.2%) 28 (6.7%) 34 (3.7%) < 0.001 Variables are presented as absolute frequencies (percentages) or mean (interquartile range) and were compared using the χ 2 and Fisher’s exact tests for qualitative variables or Student´s T test, Mann-Whitney U test, or Kruskal-Wallis test for quantitative variables. IQR: interquartile range. Notably, the most common reason for admission was infection (43%), followed by cardiac disorders (22%). The median number of comorbidities was 2 (IQR = 2). Regarding pre-existing conditions, 81% of patients (N = 741) had at least one cardiovascular disease, 34% (N = 312) had diabetes, and 4% (N = 32) had been previously diagnosed with liver disease. Psychiatric disorders were significantly more frequent among women, whereas pulmonary, liver and oncological diseases were more common in men. Additionally, 87% (N = 801) of the patients met the criteria for polypharmacy (≥ 5 medications), and 44% (N = 397) for extreme polypharmacy (≥ 10 medications) at the time of hospital admission. Among the most frequently used treatments, 35% of patients were taking benzodiazepines, and another 35% were on anticoagulant therapy. It is also remarkably that 13% of patients had a chronic prescription of opioids. A statistically significant difference was observed between men and women in the prior use of benzodiazepines, antidepressants, and neuroleptics, with higher prevalence among female patients. This sex-based difference was also significant in the use of the first two drug classes during hospitalization. Alcohol consumption: Regarding alcohol consumption and its patterns, these are detailed in Table 2 . Importantly, 64% (584 patients) reported having consumed alcohol at some point in their lifetime for a period of 10 years or more; 38% (351 patients) had consumed alcohol during the year prior to admission, and 28% (258 patients) reported active alcohol consumption at the time of hospital admission. Among those who consumed alcohol, the median daily SDU was 1 (IQR 2). A statistically significant difference was observed between daily SDU consumption and gender (0,5 vs. 1,8, p < 0.001). Documentation of alcohol consumption in medical records was found in 36% of cases, with a higher proportion among men (43% vs. 29%, p < 0.001). Table 2 Analysis of alcohol use, drinking patterns, and scores on screening tests for substance use disorders in the study population. Women (496) Men (420) Total (916) P Previous alcohol consumption 230 (46.4%) 354 (84.3%) 584 (63.8%) < 0.001 Consumption with meals 118 (51.3%) 190 (53.7%) 308 (52.7%) 0.575 Heavy alcohol consumption 10 (4,3%) 72 (20.3%) 82 (14.0%) < 0.001 Sporadic alcohol consumption 102(44,3%) 92 (26.0%) 194 (33.2%) < 0.001 Daily SDU 0 (IQR 1) 1(IQR 2) 1 (IQR 2) < 0.001 Alcohol consumption last year 125 (25.2%) 226 (53.8%) 351 (38.1%) < 0.001 Consumption with meals 71 (56.8%) 132 (58.4%) 203 (57.8%) 0.770 Heavy alcohol consumption 5 (4.0%) 18 (8.0%) 23 (6.6%) 0.151 Sporadic alcohol consumption 49 (39.2%) 76 (33.6%) 125 (35.6%) 0.297 Daily SDU 1 (IQR 2) 1 (IQR 3) 1 (IQR 3) < 0.001 Active consumption 80 (16.1%) 178 (42.4%) 258 (28.2%) < 0.001 Consumption reflected in medical history 143 (29.2%) 180 (43.2%) 323 (35.7%) < 0.001 Alcohol use disorder AUDIT ≥8 10 (2.2%) 58 (14.7%) 68 (8.0%) 2 9 (2.0%) 56 (14.5%) 65 (7.8%) < 0.001 Variables are presented as absolute frequencies (percentages) or mean (interquartile range) and were compared using the χ 2 and Fisher’s exact tests for qualitative variables or Student´s T test, Mann-Whitney U test, or Kruskal-Wallis test for quantitative variables. IQR: interquartile range; AUDIT: Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test; CAGE: screening test for alcohol use disorder (acronym stands for Cut down, Annoyed, Guilty, and Eye-opener); SDU: Standard Drink Unit. In terms of specific drinking patterns, the most frequent pattern in both groups was a daily consumption with meals, and men showed a significantly higher prevalence of intensive daily consumption in the past than women. Additionally, screening tools such as AUDIT and CAGE identified a higher prevalence of alcohol use disorder (AUD) in men, with AUDIT ≥ 8 in 15% of men compared to 2% of women ( P 2 in 15% of men versus 2% of women ( P < 0.001). Overall, 8% of patients met criteria for AUD. Furthermore, a previous diagnosis of liver disease was also significantly more frequent among men (12% vs. 2%, P < 0.001). When examining the clinical differences between patients with active alcohol consumption at the time of admission and those without, several significant findings emerge ( Table 3 ). Non-drinking individuals were notably older (median age of 87 vs. 85 years; P < 0.001) and had more frequent prescriptions of antidepressants and antipsychotics (32% vs. 21%, P < 0.001; and 26% vs. 10%, P < 0.001, respectively). Additionally, they exhibited a higher prevalence of neurological disorders, psychiatric conditions, and chronic kidney disease (33% vs. 22%, P < 0.001; 12% vs. 5%, P = 0.002; and 35% vs. 27%, P = 0.012, respectively). Conversely, active cancer and liver disease were less common in this group (7% vs. 15%, P < 0.001; and 2% vs. 7%, P < 0.001, respectively). Table 3 Differences between patients with active alcohol use and those without at the time of admission to the internal medicine ward. No active consumption (658) Active consumption (258) Total (916) P Age 87 (IQR 7) 85 (IQR 7) 87 (IQR 7) < 0.001 Length of hospital stay 10 (IQR 13) 9 (IQR 9) 10 (IQR 12) 0.152 Pre-admission treatment Benzodiazepines 233 (35.4%) 87 (33.7%) 320 (34.9%) 0.630 Neuroleptics 168 (25.5%) 25 (9.7%) 193 (21.1%) < 0.001 Antidepressants 210 (31.9%) 55 (21.3%) 265 (28.9%) 0.001 Anticoagulation 224 (34.0%) 93 (36.0%) 317 (34.5%) 0.566 Opioids 84(12.8%) 36 (14.0%) 120 (13.1%) 0.632 Polypharmacy 582(88.4%) 219 (84.9%) 801 (87.4%) 0.143 Extreme polypharmacy 294 (44.9%) 103 (40.6%) 397 (43.7%) 0.237 Comorbidities Total Comorbidities 2 (IQR 2) 2 (IQR 2) 2 (IQR 2) 0.643 Cardiovascular 536 (81.5%) 205 (79.5%) 741 (80.9%) 0.488 Pulmonary 181 (27.5%) 87 (33.7%) 268 (29.3%) 0.063 Neurological 214 (32.5%) 56 (21.7%) 270 (29.5%) 0,001 Chronic kidney disease 233 (35.4%) 69 (26.7%) 302 (33.0%) 0.012 Diabetes mellitus 215 (32.7%) 97 (37.6%) 312 (34.1%) 0.164 Psychiatric disorders 81 (12.3%) 14 (5.4%) 95 (10.4%) 0,002 Active cancer 47 (7.1%) 39 (15.1%) 86 (9.4%) < 0.001 Chronic liver disease 14 (2.1%) 18 (7.0%) 32 (3.5%) < 0.001 Complications Confusional syndrome 195 (29.7%) 72 (27.8%) 267 (29.2%) 0.595 Withdrawal syndrome 3 (0.5%) 22 (8.5%) 25 (2.7%) < 0.001 Wernicke syndrome 2 (0.3%) 3 (1.2%) 5 (0.5%) 0.137 Encephalopathy 3 (0.5%) 4 (1.6%) 7 (0.8%) 0.102 Seizures 8 (1.2%) 2 (0.8%) 10 (1.1%) 0.734 Status epilepticus 2 (0.3%) 0 (0%) 2 (0.2%) 1 Falls 17 (2.6%) 15 (5.8%) 32 (3.5%) 0.017 Insomnia 191 (29.0%) 92 (35.8%) 283 (30.9%) 0.046 Any complications 303 (46.0%) 130 (50.4%) 433 (47.3%) 0.237 Dead 68 (10.3%) 12 (4.7%) 80 (8.7%) 0.006 Imaging test results Cirrhosis 8 (1.2%) 9(3.5%) 17 (1.9%) 0,030 Steatosis 28 (4.3%) 38 (14.7%) 66 (7.2%) < 0.001 Hepatocellular carcinoma 1 (0.2%) 1 (0.4%) 2 (0.2%) 0.484 Cerebral atrophy 57 (8.7%) 28 (10.9%) 85 (9.3%) 0.304 Small vessel disease 59 (9.0%) 11 (4.3%) 70 (7.6%) 0.016 Stroke 33 (5.0%) 5 (1.9%) 38 (4.1%) 0.036 Cerebellar disorder 4 (0.6%) 1 (0.4%) 5 (0.5%) 1 Blood tests results Hemoglobin 11 (IQR 3) 12 (IQR 3) 11 (IQR 3) 0.102 MCV 91 (IQR 9) 91 (IQR 9) 91 (IQR 9) 0.137 AST 22 (IQR 15) 24 (IQR 28) 23 (IQR 18) 0.009 ALT 19 (IQR 17) 24 (IQR 30) 20 (IQR 20) < 0.001 GGT 35 (IQR 45) 61 (IQR 79) 42 (IQR 56) < 0.001 ALP 87 (IQR 57) 92 (IQR 57) 89 (IQR 57) 0.265 Total bilirubin 0.53 (IQR 0.95) 0.8 (IQR 0.6) 0.6 (IQR 0.6) < 0.001 Treatment at hospital Benzodiazepines 236 (35.9%) 101 (39.1%) 337 (36.8%) 0.354 Neuroleptics 269 (40.9%) 90 (34.9%) 359 (39.2%) 0.094 Antidepressants 176 (26.7%) 50 (19.4%) 226 (24.7%) 0.020 Opioids 128 (19.5%) 37 (14.3%) 165 (18.0%) 0.070 Discharge diagnosis Infectious disease 375 (57.0%) 128 (49.6%) 503 (54.9%) 0.044 Cardiovascular disease 273 (41.5%) 94 (36.4%) 367 (40.1%) 0.160 Pulmonary disease 137 (20.8%) 57 (22.1%) 194 (21.2%) 0.672 Endocrinological disease 56 (8.5%) 21 (8.1%) 77 (8.4%) 0.856 Digestive disease 95 (14.4%) 29 (11.2%) 124 (13.5%) 0.203 Nephrological disease 156 (23.7%) 50 (19.4%) 206 (22.5%) 0.158 Neurological disease 87 (13.2%) 27 (10.5%) 114 (12.4%) 0.256 Constitutional syndrome 63 (9.6%) 31 (12.0%) 94 (10.3%) 0.273 Alcohol-related diagnosis. 4 (0.6%) 30 (11.6%) 34 (3.7%) < 0.001 Functional assessment Barthel index < 20 pts 105 (16.0%) 7 (2.7%) 112 (12.2%) < 0.001 Lawton & Brody index 0–1 pts 287 (43.6%) 42 (16.3%) 329 (35.9%) < 0.001 CONUT score 9–12 pts 73 (11.1%) 26 (10.1%) 99 (10.8%) 0.656 Severe cognitive impairment 128 (19.5%) 16 (6.2%) 144 (15.7%) 4) 474 (72.0%) 129 (50.0%) 603 (65.8%) < 0.001 No frailty (Frail-VIG index) 118 (17.9%) 75 (29.1%) 193 (21.1%) < 0.001 Variables are presented as absolute frequencies (percentages) or mean (interquartile range) and were compared using the χ 2 and Fisher’s exact tests for qualitative variables or Student´s T test, Mann-Whitney U test, or Kruskal-Wallis test for quantitative variables. IQR: interquartile range; MRI: Magnetic Resonance Imaging; CT: Computed Tomography; MCV: Mean Corpuscular Volume; AST: Aspartate Aminotransferase; ALT: Alanine Aminotransferase; GGT: Gamma-Glutamyl Transferase; ALP: Alkaline Phosphatase; aTTP: activated Partial Thromboplastin Time; INR: International Normalised Ratio; SARC-F: Screening tool for sarcopenia based on Strength, Assistance with walking, Rise from a chair, Climb stairs, and Falls; CONUT: Controlling Nutritional Status score; an index for nutritional assessment based on serum albumin, total cholesterol, and lymphocyte count; Pts: points. When analysing lifetime alcohol consumption patterns, we divided patients into four groups ( Table 4 ) , it is remarkable that 82 patients showed an intensive daily consumption. Statistically significant differences were observed in relation to various clinically relevant variables (Table 4 ) . Notably, prior home treatment with neuroleptics or antidepressants was more common among patients who either never consumed alcohol or did so sporadically ( P = 0.011 and P = 0.026, respectively). In contrast, during hospitalization, those with a history of higher alcohol consumption more frequently required treatment with benzodiazepines ( P < 0.001). Cardiovascular disease was more prevalent among individuals with lower alcohol intake ( P < 0.001), whereas oncological conditions and liver damage were more frequent in those with greater alcohol consumption ( P < 0.001 for both). Imaging studies revealed that hepatic steatosis and cerebral atrophy were significantly more common in patients with heavier alcohol use ( P < 0.001 and P = 0.023 respectively). Table 4 Lifetime alcohol consumption patterns in the study population. Never consumption (332) Sporadic consumption (194) Consumption with meals (308) Intensive daily consumption (82) P Previous conditions Benzodiazepines 112 (33.7%) 61 (31.4%) 111 (36.0%) 36 (11.3%) 0.229 Neuroleptics 88 (26.5%) 41 (21.1%) 49 (15.9%) 15 (18.3%) 0.011 Antidepressants 111 (33.4%) 61 (31.4%) 76 (24.3%) 17 (20.7%) 0.026 Anticoagulation 113 (34.0%) 72 (37.1%) 105 (34.1%) 27 (32.9%) 0.867 Opioids 42 (12.7%) 25 (12.9%) 39 (12.7%) 14 (17.1%) 0.740 Polypharmacy 296 (89.2%) 171 (88.1%) 269 (87.3%) 65 (79.3%) 0.113 Extreme polypharmacy 155 (47.0%) 84 (43.5%) 125 (40.8%) 33 (41.3%) 0.450 Cardiovascular disease 264 (79.5%) 150 (77.3%) 269 (87.3%) 58 (70.7%) 0.001 Respiratory disease 82 (24.7%) 60 (30.9%) 96 (31.2%) 30 (36.6%) 0.099 Neurological disease 113 (34.0%) 48 (24.7%) 84 (27.3%) 25 (30.5%) 0.104 Chronic kidney disease 111 (33.4%) 60 (30.9%) 110 (35.7%) 21 (25.6%) 0.326 Diabetes mellitus 113 (34.0%) 57 (29.4%) 117 (38.0%) 25 (30.5%) 0.215 Psychiatric disorders 42 (12.7%) 20 (10.3%) 29 (9.4%) 4 (4.9%) 0.185 Active cancer 13 (3.9%) 17 (8.8%) 42 (13.6%) 14 (17.1%) < 0.001 Chronic liver disease 6 (1.8%) 2 (1.0%) 11 (3.6%) 13 (15.9%) < 0.001 Functional status Barthel index < 20 pts 61 (18.4%) 19 (9.8%) 25 (8.1%) 7 (8.5%) < 0.001 Lawton & Brody index 0–1 pts 147 (44.3%) 72 (37.1%) 89 (28.9%) 21 (25.6%) < 0.001 CONUT score 9–12 pts 40 (12.0%) 18 (9.3%) 32 (10.4%) 9 (11.0%) 0.787 Severe cognitive impairment 75 (22.6%) 24 (12.4%) 41 (13.3%) 4 (4.9%) 4) 250 (75.3%) 131 (67.6%) 178 (57.8%) 44 (53.7%) < 0.001 Severe frailty (Frail-VIG index) 19 (5.7%) 8 (4.1%) 5 (1.6%) 5 (6.1%) 0.047 Complications Confusional syndrome 90 (27.1%) 55 (28.4%) 89 (29%) 33 (40.2%) 0.132 Withdrawal syndrome 0 (0%) 0 (0%) 3 (1%) 22 (26.8%) < 0.001 Wernicke syndrome 0 (0%) 1 (0.5%) 0 (0%) 4 (4.9%) < 0.001 Encephalopathy 1 (0.3%) 0 (0%) 2 (0.7%) 4 (4.9%) < 0.001 Seizures 5 (1.5%) 1 (0.5%) 2 (0.6%) 2 (2.4%) 0.383 Status epilepticus 1 (0.3%) 1 (0.5%) 0 (0%) 0 (0%) 0.627 Falls 10 (3%) 4 (2.1%) 10 (3.2%) 8 (9.8%) 0.012 Insomnia 97 (29.2%) 52 (26.8%) 93 (30.3%) 41 (50%) 0.001 Any complications 148 (44.6%) 89 (45.9%) 145 (47.1%) 51 (62.2%) 0.038 Dead 30 (9%) 20 (10.3%) 26 (8.4%) 4 (5%) 0.531 Variables are presented as absolute frequencies (percentages) or mean (interquartile range) and were compared using the χ 2 and Fisher’s exact tests for qualitative variables or Student´s T test, Mann-Whitney U test, or Kruskal-Wallis test for quantitative variables. IQR: interquartile range; SARC-F: Screening tool for sarcopenia based on Strength, Assistance with walking, Rise from a chair, Climb stairs, and Falls; CONUT: Controlling Nutritional Status score; an index for nutritional assessment based on serum albumin, total cholesterol, and lymphocyte count. Concerning laboratory parameters, patients with active alcohol use showed significantly elevated levels of aspartate aminotransferase (AST), alanine aminotransferase (ALT), gamma-glutamyl transferase (GGT), and bilirubin. Specifically, the median values were as follows: AST 24 U/L (IQR 28) vs 22 U/L (IQR 15), P = 0.009; ALT 24 U/L (IQR 30) vs 19 U/L (IQR 17), P < 0.001; GGT 61 U/L (IQR 79) vs. 35 U/L (IQR 45), P < 0.001; and bilirubin 0.8 mg/dL (IQR 0.6) vs 0.53 mg/dL (IQR 0.95), P < 0.001. In terms of functional status, patients without active alcohol consumption showed higher rates of total and severe dependency according to both the Barthel and Lawton & Brody indices ( P < 0.001). Cognitive function was better preserved among alcohol consumers, who had lower rates of severe cognitive impairment ( P < 0.001). Additionally, alcohol consumers had a lower risk of sarcopenia and severe frailty compared to non-consumers ( P < 0.001 and p = 0,015, respectively). In contrast, no significant differences in malnutrition risk were observed between groups based on CONUT score. Clinical complications: A total of 433 (47%) patients presented at least one of the recorded complications, being more frequent the presence of insomnia (31% of patients), followed by confusional syndrome (29%) and falls (4%). Regarding complications more likely related to active alcohol consumption, 9% of patients in this group developed withdrawal syndrome, 2% encephalopathy and 1% Wernicke´s syndrome. Complete data are showed in Table 3 . If we focus on patients with a history of alcohol use ( Table 4 ) , they were more likely to develop withdrawal syndrome ( P < 0.001), Wernicke’s encephalopathy ( P < 0.001), falls ( P = 0.012), and insomnia ( P < 0.001). However, there was no significant association between prior alcohol consumption and the occurrence of delirium, epileptic complications, or in-hospital mortality. Patients with active alcohol consumption ( Table 3 ) had a significantly higher incidence of withdrawal syndrome (9% vs. 0.5%, P < 0.001; 3 patients were classified with withdrawal syndrome who were not actively drinking were categorized as having withdrawal syndrome of unknown cause) and insomnia (36% vs. 29%, p = 0.046). They also presented a higher frequency of falls during hospitalization (5.8% vs. 2.6%, P = 0.017). However, mortality was lower in patients with active alcohol consumption (5% vs. 10%, P = 0.006). Regarding patients withintensive daily consumption, 62% of them showed clinical complications, with high rates of insomnia and confusional syndrome. It is remarkable that the development of alcohol withdrawal syndrome was detected in 27% of patients in this group. If we consider all the clinical complications analysed in global, the main variables linked to them in the univariate analysis ( Table 5 ) were intensive daily consumption during lifetime, the presence of an AUD detected by both CAGE and AUDIT instruments, the existence of a severe grade of frailty, the use of benzodiazepines, opioids and neuroleptics during hospital admission and the diagnosis at discharge of infectious or neurological diseases. Table 5 Univariate analysis of variables associated with clinical complications. Any clinical complication (433) No clinical complication (483) P Chronic conditions Chronic psychiatric disorder 49 (11.3%) 46 (9.5%) 0.374 Active cancer 40 (9.2%) 46 (9.5%) 0.882 Chronic liver disease 15 (3.5%) 17 (3.5%) 0.964 Chronic neurologic disease 146 (33.7%) 124 (25.7%) 0.008 Polypharmacy 286 (82.9%) 355 (89%) 0.017 Alcohol consumption Lifetime heavy alcohol consumption 51 (11.8%) 31 (6.4%) 0.005 Any lifetime alcohol consumption 285 (65.8%) 299 (61.9%) 0.218 Barthel index 2 pts 44 (11.4%) 21 (4.7%) < 0.001 AUDIT ≥8 pts 51 (12.9%) 17 (3.7%) 0.56) 27 (6.2%) 10 (2.1%) 0.001 Severe cognitive impairment 77 (17.8%) 67 (13.9%) 0.104 Acute treatments during admission Opioid treatment 91 (21%) 74 (15.3% 0.025 Antidepressant treatment 116 (26.8%) 110 (22.8%) 0.159 Benzodiazepine treatment 202 (46.7%) 135 (28%) < 0.001 Neuroleptic treatment 245 (56.6%) 114 (23.6%) < 0.001 Diagnosis at discharge Infectious disease diagnosis 260 (60%) 243 (50.3%) 0.003 Cardiovascular disease diagnosis 170 (39.3%) 197 (40.8%) 0.638 Respiratory disease diagnosis 88 (20.3%) 106 (21.9%) 0.548 Neurologic disease diagnosis 84 (19.4%) 30 (6.2%) < 0.001 Variables are presented as absolute frequencies (percentages) or mean (interquartile range) and were compared using the χ 2 and Fisher’s exact tests for qualitative variables or Student´s T test, Mann-Whitney U test, or Kruskal-Wallis test for quantitative variables. AUDIT: Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test; CAGE: screening test for alcohol use disorder (acronym stands for Cut down, Annoyed, Guilty, and Eye-opener). A logistic regression analysis was performed to identify factors independently associated with the occurrence of any in-hospital complications (including delirium, withdrawal syndrome, Wernicke's encephalopathy, seizures, status, falls, and insomnia), excluding death, due the multiple factors that could be involved in this group of patients ( Table 6 ). The results showed that an AUDIT score ≥ 8 was significantly associated with higher odds of complications ( P < 0.001; OR 3.8, 95% CI: 1.8–8.3). In-hospital treatment with benzodiazepines ( P < 0.001; OR 2.3, 95% CI: 1.7–3.2) or neuroleptics( P < 0.001; OR 4.1, 95% CI: 2.9–5.7), as well as discharge diagnoses of infection ( P = 0.01; OR 1.7, 95% CI: 1.2–2.3) or neurological conditions ( P < 0.001; OR 3.1, 95% CI: 1.9–5.2), were also independently associated with the development of complications during hospitalization. Table 6 Logistic regression analysis. OR IC 95% P Severe frailty 3.05 1.34–6.94 0.008 Lifetime heavy alcohol consumption 0.88 0.39–1.97 0.752 CAGE > 2 1.23 0.51–2.93 0.644 AUDIT ≥8 3.87 1.81–8.30 < 0.001 Benzodiazepine treatment 2.30 1.67–3.18 < 0.001 Neuroleptic treatment 4.13 3.00–5.68 < 0.001 Opioid treatment 1.05 0.71–1.57 0.805 Infectious disease diagnosis 1.67 1.22–2.29 0.001 Neurological disease diagnosis 3.14 1.89–5.21 < 0.001 OR: Odds Ratio; CI: Confidence Interval; AUDIT: Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test; CAGE: screening test for alcohol use disorder (acronym stands for Cut down, Annoyed, Guilty, and Eye-opener). DISCUSION The present work is, to our knowledge, the first one studying the relevance and implications of alcohol consumption in very elderly patients, which are not usually included in most registers [ 3 ]. Our results reflect that the proportion of patients over 80 years of age who actively consume alcohol is not negligible. Secondly, it shows that such consumption is associated with a higher number of in-hospital complications. Lastly, it highlights the utility of screening tools such as the AUDIT test to identify patients at increased risk of complications, allowing for the implementation of preventive strategies also in very elderly patients admitted to hospital due any reason. In our cohort, up to 28% of patients over the age of 80 reported active alcohol consumption at the time of hospital admission. Previous literature specifically addressing alcohol consumption and its consequences in individuals of this advanced age is scarce or virtually non-existent. However, studies conducted in various countries that include populations aged over 60 or 65 years suggest that, despite increasing age, a proportion of individuals continue to consume alcohol [ 22 – 24 ]. Moreover, our findings are consistent with national health surveys, in which 30% of individuals over the age of 80 reported active alcohol use [ 9 ]. However, alcohol consumption (or its absence) was documented in only 36% of clinical records, revealing a clear lack of awareness regarding this issue in very old adults. Previous reports conducted by our group showed that alcohol consumption was recorded in 59% of clinical records of patients of any age admitted for any reason [ 25 ]. This difference could reflect a clinical assumption from physicians that alcohol use in this population is either non-existent or insignificant, which may lead to under recognition of potentially serious complications, as will be discussed further below. It is also remarkable the high prevalence of chronic prescriptions of benzodiazepines, neuroleptics, antidepressants and opioids, also in the active alcohol consumption group and which was even increased during admission. The potential interaction between these and other drugs and alcohol and the extremely high prevalence of polypharmacy in our cohort should be cause for alarm, giving the potential damage that these combinations can cause [ 26 , 27 ]. Another notable finding is the evident gender gap in alcohol use. Alcohol consumption was more prevalent among men, who also reported higher average intake in standard drink units and a greater prevalence of alcohol use disorders. This gender difference has been consistently observed in studies conducted across various countries over the years and can likely be explained by traditional gender role (particularly relevant given the average age of our sample) in which alcohol consumption is viewed as an undesirable trait in women [ 28 , 29 ] and even exists a hidden alcohol consumption in women due to cultural, social and educational barriers [ 30 ]. Moreover, women clinical records in our study only include alcohol consumption in 29% of cases, reflecting also a lack of interest from physicians in the potential impact of alcohol consumption in women health. An apparently paradoxical finding of our study is that very elderly patients with active alcohol consumption showed better functional and cognitive status. This observation should not be interpreted as a protective effect of alcohol, but rather as the result of biases, particularly the healthy survivor bias and the sick quitter effect. Individuals who maintain alcohol consumption into very old age are more likely to represent a functionally fitter subgroup, whereas abstinence in this population often reflects underlying disability, cognitive decline or chronic disease burden [ 31 , 32 ]. Alcohol consumption patterns, our data reflects the normalization of daily alcohol consumption even in very elderly patients, which fits with the data extracted from the European Health Survey in Spain [ 9 ]. Nevertheless, it is surprising the number of patients with intensive daily consumption (9% in our series), which is even higher than previous reports regarding to population over 60 years old [ 33 ] and similar to percentages described in the only previous reported we have found including patients over 80 years old [ 34 ]. This group presented a higher incidence of clinical complications, which reinforces the relevance of a correct quantification of alcohol consumption in elderly patients at admission. If we focus on alcohol use disorder, it is also remarkable that 8% of patients achieve AUD criteria through AUDIT test, in line to previous reports, again, in younger populations. The presence of AUD in older patients is linked to a higher prevalence of confusional syndrome, falls, cognitive impairment and even death depending on series [ 7 , 34 , 35 ]. In this sense, the approach once an AUD is suspected in elderly patients could be complex due to comorbidity, polypharmacy, frailty and even the interaction between alcohol and most wide-used medications [ 3 ]. AUDIT-C test and other tools have been validated to be implemented in elderly patients and its use should be generalized in both inpatients and ambulatory patients [ 36 ]. Moreover, in light to our results, AUDIT test emerges as a key tool to detect those high-risk patients at admission regarding the association between the detection of a potential AUD and the development of clinical complications. This is, to our knowledge, the first study which demonstrates its usefulness in very elderly patients. When analysing clinical complications, nearly a half of the included patients presented some clinical complication and those were more frequent in patients with alcohol consumption, especially those who presented a heavy alcohol consumption. The prevalence of specific alcohol-related complications, like alcohol withdrawal syndrome or Wernicke´s encephalopathy was relatively high in this group but also falls, insomnia and confusional syndrome, which reflects the high relevance of alcohol active consumption in the evolution of elderly patients during hospital admission. Although alcohol consumption is a well-known risk factor for delirium during admission [ 37 ], there are lack of data regarding very elderly patients. Nevertheless, it seems that in elderly patients the risk threshold for clinical complications related to alcohol consumption could be lower than in general population, in line with previous reports and our own results [ 38 ]. Thus, our results could reinforce the need to rethink the thresholds for high-risk consumption in this population. The main limitations of our study could be the existence of some usual bias related to alcohol consumption investigation. In a high percentage of cases, the interview was conducted through or directly to a relative, which were mostly their descendants and probably did not properly remember remote alcohol consumption, increasing the risk of both abstainer and sick quitter bias [ 39 ]. In this sense, our results could also be influenced by the healthy survivor bias, moreover when we included only very elderly patients, and a high percentage of patients with alcohol-related health problems do not achieve this age [ 7 ]. Despite these potential limitations, we believe that our results provide a valuable information that can be applied in daily clinical practice to correctly identify high-risk elderly patients during hospital admissions. CONCLUSIONS Our study shows that active alcohol consumption in very elderly patients who are admitted by any cause is frequent, usually undervalued and not included in the clinical history, especially in women. A correct quantification of alcohol consumption and patterns in these patients is mandatory at admission to better prevent clinical complications. Our results showed that the evaluation of a potential alcohol use disorder through simple tools like AUDIT test could be useful to a better care planification during hospital admission, since the detection of a possible AUD in very elderly patients is linked to a higher risk of clinical complications. Declarations AUTHORS DISCLOSURES All authors participated in the conception and design of the study and acquisition of data. I F-C and I N-V developed the analysis and interpretation of data. I F-C drafted the article and all authors revised it critically for important intellectual content. All authors gave their final approval of the version to be submitted. CONFLICT OF INTEREST: All authors declare no conflict of interests. FUNDING: No funding was required to the development of this work. Author Contribution All authors participated in the conception and design of the study and acquisition of data. I F-C and I N-V developed the analysis and interpretation of data. I F-C drafted the article and all authors revised it critically for important intellectual content. All authors gave their final approval of the version to be submitted. Data Availability All data will be available upon request to authors. References Peacock A, Leung J, Larney S et al (2018) Global statistics on alcohol, tobacco and illicit drug use: 2017 status report. Addiction 113:1905–1926. https://doi.org/10.1111/add.14234 World Health Organization (2018) Global status report on alcohol and health 2018. 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Cite Share Download PDF Status: Published Journal Publication published 02 Apr, 2026 Read the published version in Aging Clinical and Experimental Research → Version 1 posted Editorial decision: Revision requested 02 Feb, 2026 Reviews received at journal 31 Jan, 2026 Reviewers agreed at journal 23 Jan, 2026 Reviews received at journal 21 Jan, 2026 Reviewers agreed at journal 21 Jan, 2026 Reviewers agreed at journal 20 Jan, 2026 Reviews received at journal 20 Jan, 2026 Reviewers agreed at journal 20 Jan, 2026 Reviewers agreed at journal 19 Jan, 2026 Reviewers agreed at journal 19 Jan, 2026 Reviewers agreed at journal 19 Jan, 2026 Reviewers invited by journal 19 Jan, 2026 Editor assigned by journal 15 Jan, 2026 Submission checks completed at journal 10 Jan, 2026 First submitted to journal 10 Jan, 2026 You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. 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08:08:39","currentVersionCode":1,"declarations":"","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-8566710/v1","doiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-8566710/v1","draftVersion":[],"editorialEvents":[{"content":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s40520-026-03373-9","type":"published","date":"2026-04-02T15:57:40+00:00"}],"editorialNote":"","failedWorkflow":false,"files":[{"id":101206403,"identity":"4a78f308-d46f-4afa-8011-2a34dcb0faad","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2026-01-27 09:56:10","extension":"docx","order_by":0,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"acdc-reference","size":67237,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"MANUSCRIPT.docx","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-8566710/v1/582751771d0f884efd0cad51.docx"},{"id":101188811,"identity":"302a82f5-7339-4647-87e6-478fdef7741d","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2026-01-27 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06:44:58","extension":"html","order_by":5,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"acdc-reference","size":195205,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"earlyproof.html","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-8566710/v1/18923b0295ef34d66da3e69e.html"},{"id":101188809,"identity":"097a4204-3091-4d5b-88a1-ed0ce7e981ab","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2026-01-27 06:44:58","extension":"png","order_by":1,"title":"Figure 1","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"figure","size":5713,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"\u003cp\u003eThis image is not available with this version.\u003c/p\u003e","description":"","filename":"placeholderimage.png","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-8566710/v1/e0ed4efe6aa5c755d97a9fd4.png"},{"id":106343504,"identity":"b4a80492-04fe-43c9-a2fc-3d77eaa12856","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2026-04-07 16:06:06","extension":"pdf","order_by":0,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"manuscript-pdf","size":1730185,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"manuscript.pdf","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-8566710/v1/11778940-79e8-499c-8f1f-dccdb1d017b0.pdf"}],"financialInterests":"No competing interests reported.","formattedTitle":"Alcohol use and in-hospital complications in patients aged 80 years and older: a multicentre observational study in Spain.","fulltext":[{"header":"INTRODUCTION","content":"\u003cp\u003eAlcohol is the most widely accepted addictive and psychoactive substance globally [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR1\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e1\u003c/span\u003e]. Its consumption dates back thousands of years, originating with the advent of agriculture, and today it is deeply embedded in social routines and traditions across all continents. Its role in the development of up to 200 health problems is well established, alongside the psychosocial issues associated with its use [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR2\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2\u003c/span\u003e].\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eHowever, while the general population is frequently studied, older adults\u0026mdash;particularly those aged over 80 years\u0026mdash; are underrepresented in the literature, despite being potentially more vulnerable to organic damage due to alcohol consumption [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR3\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e3\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR4\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e4\u003c/span\u003e].\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe elderly population in Europe has grown significantly, with those over 80 years constituting 6% of the population in 2023, up from 2,7% two decades earlier [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR5\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e5\u003c/span\u003e]. This demographic shift underscores the importance of addressing age-specific health determinants, including alcohol use. Older adults often present specific challenges due to comorbidities, polypharmacy, and age-related physiological changes that amplify the risks associated with alcohol [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR6\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e6\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR7\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e7\u003c/span\u003e].\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eAlcohol consumption among older adults is often underestimated in clinical settings, by patients, families, and healthcare providers [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR8\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e8\u003c/span\u003e]. Misconceptions about drinking habits in the elderly, along with the belief that its impact is negligible, have resulted in insufficient screening and intervention efforts. However, the available data suggest a different reality, for instance, the 2020 European Health Survey reported that 30% of individuals over 85 years had consumed alcohol in the last year [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR9\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e9\u003c/span\u003e], although there is lack of data regarding the impact of this consumption on health. Moreover, during hospital admissions, a high percentage of very elderly patients experience complications such as psychomotor agitation or hallucinations, whose origin is often multifactorialand could be linked to alcohol past or active consumption.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eThus, we designed the present study with the aim of quantifying alcohol consumption, evaluating the prevalence of alcohol use disorders and clarifying the potential implications of alcohol use on the health of elderly patients admitted to internal medicine departments across Spain. By examining the interplay between alcohol use, disease progression, clinical outcomes and complications during hospitalization, we aim to shed light on an often overlooked yet critical public health issue.\u003c/p\u003e"},{"header":"MATERIALS AND METHODS","content":"\u003cp\u003eFor this purpose, a national multi-centre, prospective and observational study was carried out between June 2022 and July 2023, promoted by the Alcohol and other Drugs Work Group of Spanish Society of Internal Medicine (SEMI). Nineteen hospitals across Spain participated in it, with the aim of including a representative sample of entire society, thus avoiding possible bias due to idiosyncratic consumption patterns of different territories.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e This study adheres to the ethical standards of the Declaration of Helsinki, received approval from ethics committees of all participating hospitals, and written informed consent was obtained from all patients prior to inclusion. Data collection was conducted using an anonymized online database.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe inclusion criteria comprised all patients aged 80 years or older, who were admitted to internal medicine departments for any reason and provided written informed consent. Patients who declined to provide informed consent were excluded. Participant recruitment took place upon hospital admission.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eFor each patient, data collection was divided into two parts. First, epidemiological, clinical, laboratory, and imaging variables were recorded. These included sex, age, length of hospitalization, reason for admission, prior treatments, pre-existing chronic conditions, treatments administered during hospitalization, and any medical complication occurring during the stay that could be related to alcohol consumption (such as disorientation, agitation, withdrawal syndrome, Wernicke\u0026rsquo;s encephalopathy, seizures, falls, insomnia, or death) [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR3\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e3\u003c/span\u003e]. Laboratory results and imaging findings were also documented.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eRegarding prior treatments, polypharmacy was defined as the regular use of five or more medications [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR10\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e10\u003c/span\u003e], while extreme polypharmacy was defined as the use of ten or more medications [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR11\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e11\u003c/span\u003e]. In the same way, we analysed the prior and in-hospital most used medications that can enhance alcohol consumption effects or be involved in similar potential complications, including benzodiazepines, neuroleptics, antidepressants, opioids, and anticoagulants. All these data were extracted from the electronic medical records of each patient.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eIn a second step, an interview was conducted with the patient or their primary caregiver if the patient was unable to participate. The interview focused on current and past alcohol consumption and consumption patterns. Regarding past alcohol use, we recorded whether the patient had consumed alcohol for at least 10 consecutive years at any point in their life, and classified the consumption pattern as: never consumed, daily consumption with meals, intensive daily consumption, or occasional consumption. In this context, intensive consumption refers to what is traditionally known as \u0026ldquo;binge drinking\u0026rdquo; [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR12\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e12\u003c/span\u003e], while occasional consumption corresponds to low-risk drinking\u0026mdash;defined as less than one standard drink unit (SDU) per day for women and less than two SDU per day for men\u0026mdash;occurring sporadically and without a fixed daily or weekly pattern. We also inquired about alcohol use during the past year, categorizing it into the same groups as previously mentioned. Finally, we documented whether the patient reported active alcohol consumption at the time of hospital admission. If so, the number of SDUs consumed per day was recorded. It is important to note that, in Spain, one SDU is equivalent to 10 grams of ethanol [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR13\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e13\u003c/span\u003e]. Lastly, the AUDIT and CAGE tests were administered to identify alcohol-related disorders and dependence [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR14\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e14\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR15\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e15\u003c/span\u003e].\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eAdditionally, patients' functional status was assessed using the Barthel\u0026acute;s Index and the Lawton and Brody\u0026acute;s Scale [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR16\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e16\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR17\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e17\u003c/span\u003e]; frailty was evaluated with the Frail-VIG Index [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR18\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e18\u003c/span\u003e]; cognitive impairment, including its presence and severity, was assessed using the Pfeiffer\u0026acute;s test [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR19\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e19\u003c/span\u003e]; and nutritional status and sarcopenia were evaluated using the CONUT Score and the SARC-F Scale [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR20\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e20\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR21\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e21\u003c/span\u003e], respectively.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eA descriptive analysis was conducted to examine the characteristics of the participants, using percentages for categorical variables, the mean and standard deviation (SD) for continuous variables with a normal distribution, and the median and interquartile range (IQR) for those with a non-normal distribution. For the comparison of qualitative variables, Pearson\u0026rsquo;s Chi-square test or Fisher\u0026rsquo;s exact test was used as appropriate. For continuous variables, Student\u0026rsquo;s t-test, Mann-Whitney U test, or Kruskal-Wallis test was employed, depending on the data distribution. A p-value of \u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.05 was considered statistically significant in all analyses.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eA binary logistic regression analysis was performed to evaluate the association between various factors and the occurrence of complications during hospitalization. The dependent variable was the presence of any in-hospital complication\u0026mdash;including delirium, withdrawal syndrome, Wernicke's encephalopathy, seizures, status epilepticus, falls, and insomnia\u0026mdash;, excluding death. A composite outcome was used because of these events share clinical and pathophysiological mechanisms\u0026mdash;such as neurocognitive vulnerability and the effects of alcohol and psychoactive medications\u0026mdash;and often coexist. Grouping them into a composite outcome enhanced statistical power while preserving their clinical interrelatedness and relevance. In contrast, death was excluded due to its multifactorial nature, particularly in a very elderly population (\u0026gt;\u0026thinsp;80 years) admitted for acute medical conditions. In such cases, death frequently results from a complex interplay of age-related vulnerability, pre-existing comorbidities, and the severity of the acute illness, rather than being directly attributable to modifiable clinical or functional variables such as alcohol use or medication exposure. Independent variables included those that had shown statistical significance (\u003cem\u003ep\u003c/em\u003e\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.05) in the preceding univariate analysis, along with patient sex and active alcohol consumption, due to their clinical relevance to the study.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eStatistical analyses were performed using SPSS Statistics for Mac v25.0 (SPSS Inc, Chicago, IL, USA).\u003c/p\u003e"},{"header":"RESULTS","content":"\u003cdiv id=\"Sec4\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003ePatient\u0026rsquo;s characteristics:\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eA total of 916 patients from 19 hospitals across different regions of Spain were included in the study \u003cb\u003e(Fig.\u0026nbsp;1).\u003c/b\u003e The median age was 87 years (IQR\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;7 years), and 54.4% (N\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;498) of the participants were women. The median length of hospital stay was 10 days (IQR\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;12 days). The characteristics of the studied population are summarized in Table\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Tab1\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e1\u003c/span\u003e.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"gridtable\"\u003e\u003ctable float=\"Yes\" id=\"Tab1\" border=\"1\"\u003e \u003ccaption language=\"En\"\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"CaptionNumber\"\u003eTable 1\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"CaptionContent\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eCharacteristics of the study population.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003c/caption\u003e \u003ccolgroup cols=\"5\"\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c1\" colnum=\"1\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c2\" colnum=\"2\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c3\" colnum=\"3\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c4\" colnum=\"4\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c5\" colnum=\"5\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cthead\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eWomen (498)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eMen (421)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eTotal (N\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;916)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eP\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/thead\u003e \u003ctbody\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eAge\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e88 (IQR 7)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e86 (IQR 7)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e87 (IQR 7)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eLength of hospital stay\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e10 (IQR 12)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e10 (IQR 11)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e10 (IQR 12)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.208\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"5\" nameend=\"c5\" namest=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003ePre-admission treatment\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eBenzodiazepines\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e195 (39.3%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e125 (29.8%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e320 (34.9%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.003\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eNeuroleptics\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e117 (23.6%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e76 (18.1%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e193 (21.1%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.042\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eAntidepressants\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e177(35.7%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e88 (21.0%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e265 (28.9%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eAnticoagulation\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e164 (33.1%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e153 (36.4%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e317 (34.6%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.286\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eOpioids\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e69 (13.9%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e51 (12.1%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e120 (13.1%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.429\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003ePolypharmacy\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e434 (87.5%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e367 (87.4%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e801 (87.4%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.957\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eExtreme polypharmacy\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e212 (43.0%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e185 (44.5%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e397 (43.7%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.656\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"5\" nameend=\"c5\" namest=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eComorbidities\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eCardiovascular\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e404 (81.5%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e337 (80.2%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e741 (80.9%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.642\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003ePulmonary\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e122 (24.6%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e146 (34.8%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e268 (29.3%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.001\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eNeurological\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e143 (28.8%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e127 (30.2%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e270 (29.5%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.630\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eChronic kidney disease\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e157 (31.7%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e145 (34.5%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e302 (33.0%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.357\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eDiabetes mellitus\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e164 (33.1%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e148 (35.2%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e312 (34.1%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.478\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003ePsychiatric disorders\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e70 (14.1%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e25 (6.0%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e95 (10.4%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.001\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eActive oncological disease\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e24 (4.8%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e62 (14.8%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e86 (9.4%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eChronic liver disease\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e11 (2.2%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e21 (5.0%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e32 (3.5%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.022\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"5\" nameend=\"c5\" namest=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eTreatment at hospital\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eBenzodiazepines\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e199 (40.1%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e138 (32.9%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e337 (36.8%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.023\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eNeuroleptics\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e203 (40.9%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e156 (37.1%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e359 (39.2%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.242\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eAntidepressants\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e152 (30.6%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e74 (17.6%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e226 (24.7%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eOpioids\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e95 (19.2%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e70 (16.7%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e165 (18.0%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.329\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"5\" nameend=\"c5\" namest=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eDischarge diagnosis\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eInfectious disease\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e274 (55.2%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e229(54.5%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e503 (54.9%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.828\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eCardiovascular disease\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e200 (40.3%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e167 (39.8%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e367 (40.1%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.863\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003ePulmonary disease\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e87 (17.5%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e107 (25.5%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e194 (21.2%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.003\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eEndocrinological disease\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e44 (8.9%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e33 (7.9%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e77 (8.4%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.582\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eDigestive disease\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e63 (12.7%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e61 (14.5%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e124 (13.5%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.422\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eNephrological disease\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e113 (22.8%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e93 (22.1%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e206 (22.5%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.817\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eNeurological disease\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e76 (15.3%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e38 (9.0%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e114(12.4%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.004\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eGeneral syndrome\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e50 (10.1%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e44 (10.5%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e94 (10.3%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.844\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eAlcohol-related diagnosis\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e6 (1.2%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e28 (6.7%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e34 (3.7%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/tbody\u003e \u003c/colgroup\u003e \u003ctfoot\u003e \u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd colspan=\"5\"\u003eVariables are presented as absolute frequencies (percentages) or mean (interquartile range) and were compared using the \u003cem\u003eχ\u003c/em\u003e\u003csup\u003e2\u003c/sup\u003e and Fisher\u0026rsquo;s exact tests for qualitative variables or Student\u0026acute;s T test, Mann-Whitney U test, or Kruskal-Wallis test for quantitative variables. IQR: interquartile range.\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/tfoot\u003e \u003c/table\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eNotably, the most common reason for admission was infection (43%), followed by cardiac disorders (22%). The median number of comorbidities was 2 (IQR\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;2). Regarding pre-existing conditions, 81% of patients (N\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;741) had at least one cardiovascular disease, 34% (N\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;312) had diabetes, and 4% (N\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;32) had been previously diagnosed with liver disease. Psychiatric disorders were significantly more frequent among women, whereas pulmonary, liver and oncological diseases were more common in men.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eAdditionally, 87% (N\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;801) of the patients met the criteria for polypharmacy (\u0026ge;\u0026thinsp;5 medications), and 44% (N\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;397) for extreme polypharmacy (\u0026ge;\u0026thinsp;10 medications) at the time of hospital admission. Among the most frequently used treatments, 35% of patients were taking benzodiazepines, and another 35% were on anticoagulant therapy. It is also remarkably that 13% of patients had a chronic prescription of opioids. A statistically significant difference was observed between men and women in the prior use of benzodiazepines, antidepressants, and neuroleptics, with higher prevalence among female patients. This sex-based difference was also significant in the use of the first two drug classes during hospitalization.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eAlcohol consumption:\u003c/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eRegarding alcohol consumption and its patterns, these are detailed in Table\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Tab2\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e2\u003c/span\u003e. Importantly, 64% (584 patients) reported having consumed alcohol at some point in their lifetime for a period of 10 years or more; 38% (351 patients) had consumed alcohol during the year prior to admission, and 28% (258 patients) reported active alcohol consumption at the time of hospital admission. Among those who consumed alcohol, the median daily SDU was 1 (IQR 2). A statistically significant difference was observed between daily SDU consumption and gender (0,5 vs. 1,8, p\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001). Documentation of alcohol consumption in medical records was found in 36% of cases, with a higher proportion among men (43% vs. 29%, p\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001).\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"gridtable\"\u003e\u003ctable float=\"Yes\" id=\"Tab2\" border=\"1\"\u003e \u003ccaption language=\"En\"\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"CaptionNumber\"\u003eTable 2\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"CaptionContent\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eAnalysis of alcohol use, drinking patterns, and scores on screening tests for substance use disorders in the study population.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003c/caption\u003e \u003ccolgroup cols=\"5\"\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c1\" colnum=\"1\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c2\" colnum=\"2\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c3\" colnum=\"3\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c4\" colnum=\"4\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c5\" colnum=\"5\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cthead\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eWomen (496)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eMen (420)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eTotal (916)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eP\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/thead\u003e \u003ctbody\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003ePrevious alcohol consumption\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e230 (46.4%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e354 (84.3%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e584 (63.8%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eConsumption with meals\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e118 (51.3%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e190 (53.7%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e308 (52.7%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.575\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eHeavy alcohol consumption\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e10 (4,3%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e72 (20.3%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e82 (14.0%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eSporadic alcohol consumption\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e102(44,3%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e92 (26.0%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e194 (33.2%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eDaily SDU\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0 (IQR 1)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1(IQR 2)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1 (IQR 2)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eAlcohol consumption last year\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e125 (25.2%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e226 (53.8%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e351 (38.1%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eConsumption with meals\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e71 (56.8%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e132 (58.4%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e203 (57.8%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.770\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eHeavy alcohol consumption\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e5 (4.0%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e18 (8.0%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e23 (6.6%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.151\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eSporadic alcohol consumption\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e49 (39.2%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e76 (33.6%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e125 (35.6%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.297\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eDaily SDU\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1 (IQR 2)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1 (IQR 3)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1 (IQR 3)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eActive consumption\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e80 (16.1%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e178 (42.4%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e258 (28.2%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eConsumption reflected in medical history\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e143 (29.2%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e180 (43.2%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e323 (35.7%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"5\" nameend=\"c5\" namest=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eAlcohol use disorder\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eAUDIT \u0026ge;8\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e10 (2.2%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e58 (14.7%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e68 (8.0%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eCAGE\u0026thinsp;\u0026gt;\u0026thinsp;2\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e9 (2.0%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e56 (14.5%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e65 (7.8%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/tbody\u003e \u003c/colgroup\u003e \u003ctfoot\u003e \u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd colspan=\"5\"\u003eVariables are presented as absolute frequencies (percentages) or mean (interquartile range) and were compared using the \u003cem\u003eχ\u003c/em\u003e\u003csup\u003e2\u003c/sup\u003e and Fisher\u0026rsquo;s exact tests for qualitative variables or Student\u0026acute;s T test, Mann-Whitney U test, or Kruskal-Wallis test for quantitative variables. IQR: interquartile range; AUDIT: Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test; CAGE: screening test for alcohol use disorder (acronym stands for Cut down, Annoyed, Guilty, and Eye-opener); SDU: Standard Drink Unit.\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/tfoot\u003e \u003c/table\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eIn terms of specific drinking patterns, the most frequent pattern in both groups was a daily consumption with meals, and men showed a significantly higher prevalence of intensive daily consumption in the past than women. Additionally, screening tools such as AUDIT and CAGE identified a higher prevalence of alcohol use disorder (AUD) in men, with AUDIT\u0026thinsp;\u0026ge;\u0026thinsp;8 in 15% of men compared to 2% of women (\u003cem\u003eP\u003c/em\u003e\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001) and CAGE\u0026thinsp;\u0026gt;\u0026thinsp;2 in 15% of men versus 2% of women (\u003cem\u003eP\u003c/em\u003e\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001). Overall, 8% of patients met criteria for AUD. Furthermore, a previous diagnosis of liver disease was also significantly more frequent among men (12% vs. 2%, \u003cem\u003eP\u003c/em\u003e\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001).\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eWhen examining the clinical differences between patients with active alcohol consumption at the time of admission and those without, several significant findings emerge \u003cb\u003e(\u003c/b\u003eTable\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Tab3\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e3\u003c/span\u003e\u003cb\u003e).\u003c/b\u003e Non-drinking individuals were notably older (median age of 87 vs. 85 years; \u003cem\u003eP\u003c/em\u003e\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001) and had more frequent prescriptions of antidepressants and antipsychotics (32% vs. 21%, \u003cem\u003eP\u003c/em\u003e\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001; and 26% vs. 10%, \u003cem\u003eP\u003c/em\u003e\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001, respectively). Additionally, they exhibited a higher prevalence of neurological disorders, psychiatric conditions, and chronic kidney disease (33% vs. 22%, \u003cem\u003eP\u003c/em\u003e\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001; 12% vs. 5%, \u003cem\u003eP\u003c/em\u003e\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;0.002; and 35% vs. 27%, \u003cem\u003eP\u003c/em\u003e\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;0.012, respectively). Conversely, active cancer and liver disease were less common in this group (7% vs. 15%, \u003cem\u003eP\u003c/em\u003e\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001; and 2% vs. 7%, \u003cem\u003eP\u003c/em\u003e\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001, respectively).\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"gridtable\"\u003e\u003ctable float=\"Yes\" id=\"Tab3\" border=\"1\"\u003e \u003ccaption language=\"En\"\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"CaptionNumber\"\u003eTable 3\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"CaptionContent\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eDifferences between patients with active alcohol use and those without at the time of admission to the internal medicine ward.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003c/caption\u003e \u003ccolgroup cols=\"5\"\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c1\" colnum=\"1\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c2\" colnum=\"2\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c3\" colnum=\"3\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c4\" colnum=\"4\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c5\" colnum=\"5\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cthead\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eNo active consumption (658)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eActive consumption\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e(258)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eTotal\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e(916)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eP\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/thead\u003e \u003ctbody\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eAge\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e87 (IQR 7)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e85 (IQR 7)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e87 (IQR 7)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eLength of hospital stay\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e10 (IQR 13)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e9 (IQR 9)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e10 (IQR 12)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.152\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"5\" nameend=\"c5\" namest=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003ePre-admission treatment\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eBenzodiazepines\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e233 (35.4%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e87 (33.7%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e320 (34.9%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.630\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eNeuroleptics\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e168 (25.5%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e25 (9.7%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e193 (21.1%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eAntidepressants\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e210 (31.9%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e55 (21.3%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e265 (28.9%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.001\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eAnticoagulation\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e224 (34.0%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e93 (36.0%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e317 (34.5%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.566\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eOpioids\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e84(12.8%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e36 (14.0%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e120 (13.1%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.632\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003ePolypharmacy\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e582(88.4%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e219 (84.9%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e801 (87.4%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.143\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eExtreme polypharmacy\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e294 (44.9%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e103 (40.6%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e397 (43.7%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.237\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eComorbidities\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eTotal Comorbidities\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2 (IQR 2)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2 (IQR 2)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2 (IQR 2)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.643\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eCardiovascular\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e536 (81.5%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e205 (79.5%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e741 (80.9%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.488\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003ePulmonary\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e181 (27.5%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e87 (33.7%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e268 (29.3%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.063\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eNeurological\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e214 (32.5%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e56 (21.7%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e270 (29.5%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0,001\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eChronic kidney disease\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e233 (35.4%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e69 (26.7%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e302 (33.0%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.012\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eDiabetes mellitus\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e215 (32.7%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e97 (37.6%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e312 (34.1%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.164\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003ePsychiatric disorders\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e81 (12.3%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e14 (5.4%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e95 (10.4%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0,002\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eActive cancer\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e47 (7.1%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e39 (15.1%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e86 (9.4%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eChronic liver disease\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e14 (2.1%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e18 (7.0%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e32 (3.5%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eComplications\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eConfusional syndrome\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e195 (29.7%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e72 (27.8%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e267 (29.2%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.595\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eWithdrawal syndrome\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3 (0.5%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e22 (8.5%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e25 (2.7%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eWernicke syndrome\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2 (0.3%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3 (1.2%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e5 (0.5%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.137\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eEncephalopathy\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3 (0.5%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e4 (1.6%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e7 (0.8%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.102\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eSeizures\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e8 (1.2%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2 (0.8%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e10 (1.1%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.734\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eStatus epilepticus\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2 (0.3%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0 (0%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2 (0.2%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eFalls\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e17 (2.6%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e15 (5.8%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e32 (3.5%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.017\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eInsomnia\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e191 (29.0%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e92 (35.8%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e283 (30.9%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.046\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eAny complications\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e303 (46.0%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e130 (50.4%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e433 (47.3%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.237\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eDead\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e68 (10.3%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e12 (4.7%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e80 (8.7%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.006\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eImaging test results\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eCirrhosis\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e8 (1.2%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e9(3.5%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e17 (1.9%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0,030\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eSteatosis\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e28 (4.3%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e38 (14.7%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e66 (7.2%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eHepatocellular carcinoma\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1 (0.2%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1 (0.4%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2 (0.2%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.484\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eCerebral atrophy\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e57 (8.7%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e28 (10.9%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e85 (9.3%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.304\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eSmall vessel disease\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e59 (9.0%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e11 (4.3%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e70 (7.6%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.016\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eStroke\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e33 (5.0%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e5 (1.9%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e38 (4.1%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.036\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eCerebellar disorder\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e4 (0.6%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1 (0.4%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e5 (0.5%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"5\" nameend=\"c5\" namest=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eBlood tests results\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eHemoglobin\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e11 (IQR 3)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e12 (IQR 3)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e11 (IQR 3)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.102\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eMCV\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e91 (IQR 9)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e91 (IQR 9)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e91 (IQR 9)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.137\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eAST\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e22 (IQR 15)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e24 (IQR 28)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e23 (IQR 18)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.009\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eALT\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e19 (IQR 17)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e24 (IQR 30)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e20 (IQR 20)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eGGT\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e35 (IQR 45)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e61 (IQR 79)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e42 (IQR 56)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eALP\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e87 (IQR 57)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e92 (IQR 57)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e89 (IQR 57)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.265\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eTotal bilirubin\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.53 (IQR 0.95)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.8 (IQR 0.6)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.6 (IQR 0.6)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"5\" nameend=\"c5\" namest=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eTreatment at hospital\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eBenzodiazepines\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e236 (35.9%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e101 (39.1%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e337 (36.8%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.354\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eNeuroleptics\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e269 (40.9%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e90 (34.9%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e359 (39.2%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.094\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eAntidepressants\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e176 (26.7%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e50 (19.4%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e226 (24.7%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.020\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eOpioids\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e128 (19.5%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e37 (14.3%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e165 (18.0%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.070\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"5\" nameend=\"c5\" namest=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eDischarge diagnosis\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eInfectious disease\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e375 (57.0%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e128 (49.6%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e503 (54.9%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.044\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eCardiovascular disease\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e273 (41.5%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e94 (36.4%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e367 (40.1%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.160\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003ePulmonary disease\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e137 (20.8%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e57 (22.1%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e194 (21.2%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.672\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eEndocrinological disease\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e56 (8.5%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e21 (8.1%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e77 (8.4%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.856\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eDigestive disease\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e95 (14.4%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e29 (11.2%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e124 (13.5%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.203\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eNephrological disease\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e156 (23.7%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e50 (19.4%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e206 (22.5%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.158\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eNeurological disease\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e87 (13.2%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e27 (10.5%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e114 (12.4%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.256\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eConstitutional syndrome\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e63 (9.6%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e31 (12.0%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e94 (10.3%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.273\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eAlcohol-related diagnosis.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e4 (0.6%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e30 (11.6%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e34 (3.7%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"5\" nameend=\"c5\" namest=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eFunctional assessment\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eBarthel index\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;20 pts\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e105 (16.0%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e7 (2.7%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e112 (12.2%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eLawton \u0026amp; Brody index 0\u0026ndash;1 pts\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e287 (43.6%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e42 (16.3%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e329 (35.9%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eCONUT score 9\u0026ndash;12 pts\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e73 (11.1%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e26 (10.1%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e99 (10.8%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.656\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eSevere cognitive impairment\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e128 (19.5%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e16 (6.2%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e144 (15.7%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eRisk of sarcopenia (SARC-F\u0026thinsp;\u0026gt;\u0026thinsp;4)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e474 (72.0%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e129 (50.0%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e603 (65.8%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eNo frailty (Frail-VIG index)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e118 (17.9%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e75 (29.1%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e193 (21.1%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/tbody\u003e \u003c/colgroup\u003e \u003ctfoot\u003e \u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd colspan=\"5\"\u003eVariables are presented as absolute frequencies (percentages) or mean (interquartile range) and were compared using the \u003cem\u003eχ\u003c/em\u003e\u003csup\u003e2\u003c/sup\u003e and Fisher\u0026rsquo;s exact tests for qualitative variables or Student\u0026acute;s T test, Mann-Whitney U test, or Kruskal-Wallis test for quantitative variables. IQR: interquartile range; MRI: Magnetic Resonance Imaging; CT: Computed Tomography; MCV: Mean Corpuscular Volume; AST: Aspartate Aminotransferase; ALT: Alanine Aminotransferase; GGT: Gamma-Glutamyl Transferase; ALP: Alkaline Phosphatase; aTTP: activated Partial Thromboplastin Time; INR: International Normalised Ratio; SARC-F: Screening tool for sarcopenia based on Strength, Assistance with walking, Rise from a chair, Climb stairs, and Falls; CONUT: Controlling Nutritional Status score; an index for nutritional assessment based on serum albumin, total cholesterol, and lymphocyte count; Pts: points.\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/tfoot\u003e \u003c/table\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eWhen analysing lifetime alcohol consumption patterns, we divided patients into four groups \u003cb\u003e(\u003c/b\u003eTable\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Tab4\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e4\u003c/span\u003e\u003cb\u003e)\u003c/b\u003e, it is remarkable that 82 patients showed an intensive daily consumption. Statistically significant differences were observed in relation to various clinically relevant variables (Table\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Tab4\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e4\u003c/span\u003e\u003cb\u003e)\u003c/b\u003e. Notably, prior home treatment with neuroleptics or antidepressants was more common among patients who either never consumed alcohol or did so sporadically (\u003cem\u003eP\u003c/em\u003e\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;0.011 and \u003cem\u003eP\u003c/em\u003e\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;0.026, respectively). In contrast, during hospitalization, those with a history of higher alcohol consumption more frequently required treatment with benzodiazepines (\u003cem\u003eP\u003c/em\u003e\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001). Cardiovascular disease was more prevalent among individuals with lower alcohol intake (\u003cem\u003eP\u003c/em\u003e\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001), whereas oncological conditions and liver damage were more frequent in those with greater alcohol consumption (\u003cem\u003eP\u003c/em\u003e\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001 for both). Imaging studies revealed that hepatic steatosis and cerebral atrophy were significantly more common in patients with heavier alcohol use (\u003cem\u003eP\u003c/em\u003e\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001 and \u003cem\u003eP\u003c/em\u003e\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;0.023 respectively).\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"gridtable\"\u003e\u003ctable float=\"Yes\" id=\"Tab4\" border=\"1\"\u003e \u003ccaption language=\"En\"\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"CaptionNumber\"\u003eTable 4\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"CaptionContent\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eLifetime alcohol consumption patterns in the study population.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003c/caption\u003e \u003ccolgroup cols=\"6\"\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c1\" colnum=\"1\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c2\" colnum=\"2\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c3\" colnum=\"3\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c4\" colnum=\"4\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c5\" colnum=\"5\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c6\" colnum=\"6\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cthead\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eNever consumption (332)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eSporadic consumption (194)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eConsumption with meals (308)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eIntensive daily consumption (82)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eP\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colspan=\"6\" nameend=\"c6\" namest=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003ePrevious conditions\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/thead\u003e \u003ctbody\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eBenzodiazepines\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e112 (33.7%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e61 (31.4%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e111 (36.0%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e36 (11.3%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.229\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eNeuroleptics\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e88 (26.5%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e41 (21.1%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e49 (15.9%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e15 (18.3%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.011\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eAntidepressants\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e111 (33.4%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e61 (31.4%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e76 (24.3%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e17 (20.7%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.026\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eAnticoagulation\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e113 (34.0%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e72 (37.1%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e105 (34.1%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e27 (32.9%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.867\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eOpioids\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e42 (12.7%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e25 (12.9%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e39 (12.7%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e14 (17.1%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.740\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003ePolypharmacy\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e296 (89.2%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e171 (88.1%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e269 (87.3%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e65 (79.3%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.113\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eExtreme polypharmacy\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e155 (47.0%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e84 (43.5%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e125 (40.8%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e33 (41.3%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.450\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eCardiovascular disease\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e264 (79.5%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e150 (77.3%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e269 (87.3%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e58 (70.7%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.001\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eRespiratory disease\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e82 (24.7%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e60 (30.9%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e96 (31.2%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e30 (36.6%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.099\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eNeurological disease\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e113 (34.0%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e48 (24.7%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e84 (27.3%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e25 (30.5%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.104\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eChronic kidney disease\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e111 (33.4%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e60 (30.9%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e110 (35.7%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e21 (25.6%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.326\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eDiabetes mellitus\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e113 (34.0%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e57 (29.4%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e117 (38.0%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e25 (30.5%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.215\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003ePsychiatric disorders\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e42 (12.7%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e20 (10.3%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e29 (9.4%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e4 (4.9%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.185\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eActive cancer\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e13 (3.9%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e17 (8.8%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e42 (13.6%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e14 (17.1%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eChronic liver disease\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e6 (1.8%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2 (1.0%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e11 (3.6%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e13 (15.9%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"6\" nameend=\"c6\" namest=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eFunctional status\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eBarthel index\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;20 pts\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e61 (18.4%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e19 (9.8%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e25 (8.1%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e7 (8.5%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eLawton \u0026amp; Brody index 0\u0026ndash;1 pts\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e147 (44.3%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e72 (37.1%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e89 (28.9%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e21 (25.6%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eCONUT score 9\u0026ndash;12 pts\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e40 (12.0%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e18 (9.3%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e32 (10.4%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e9 (11.0%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.787\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eSevere cognitive impairment\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e75 (22.6%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e24 (12.4%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e41 (13.3%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e4 (4.9%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eRisk of sarcopenia (SARC-F\u0026thinsp;\u0026gt;\u0026thinsp;4)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e250 (75.3%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e131 (67.6%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e178 (57.8%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e44 (53.7%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eSevere frailty (Frail-VIG index)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e19 (5.7%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e8 (4.1%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e5 (1.6%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e5 (6.1%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.047\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"6\" nameend=\"c6\" namest=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eComplications\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eConfusional syndrome\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e90 (27.1%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e55 (28.4%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e89 (29%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e33 (40.2%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.132\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eWithdrawal syndrome\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0 (0%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0 (0%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3 (1%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e22 (26.8%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eWernicke syndrome\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0 (0%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1 (0.5%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0 (0%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e4 (4.9%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eEncephalopathy\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1 (0.3%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0 (0%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2 (0.7%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e4 (4.9%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eSeizures\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e5 (1.5%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1 (0.5%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2 (0.6%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2 (2.4%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.383\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eStatus epilepticus\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1 (0.3%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1 (0.5%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0 (0%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0 (0%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.627\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eFalls\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e10 (3%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e4 (2.1%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e10 (3.2%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e8 (9.8%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.012\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eInsomnia\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e97 (29.2%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e52 (26.8%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e93 (30.3%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e41 (50%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.001\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eAny complications\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e148 (44.6%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e89 (45.9%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e145 (47.1%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e51 (62.2%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.038\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eDead\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e30 (9%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e20 (10.3%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e26 (8.4%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e4 (5%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.531\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/tbody\u003e \u003c/colgroup\u003e \u003ctfoot\u003e \u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd colspan=\"6\"\u003eVariables are presented as absolute frequencies (percentages) or mean (interquartile range) and were compared using the \u003cem\u003eχ\u003c/em\u003e\u003csup\u003e2\u003c/sup\u003e and Fisher\u0026rsquo;s exact tests for qualitative variables or Student\u0026acute;s T test, Mann-Whitney U test, or Kruskal-Wallis test for quantitative variables. IQR: interquartile range; SARC-F: Screening tool for sarcopenia based on Strength, Assistance with walking, Rise from a chair, Climb stairs, and Falls; CONUT: Controlling Nutritional Status score; an index for nutritional assessment based on serum albumin, total cholesterol, and lymphocyte count.\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/tfoot\u003e \u003c/table\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eConcerning laboratory parameters, patients with active alcohol use showed significantly elevated levels of aspartate aminotransferase (AST), alanine aminotransferase (ALT), gamma-glutamyl transferase (GGT), and bilirubin. Specifically, the median values were as follows: AST 24 U/L (IQR 28) vs 22 U/L (IQR 15), \u003cem\u003eP\u003c/em\u003e\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;0.009; ALT 24 U/L (IQR 30) vs 19 U/L (IQR 17), \u003cem\u003eP\u003c/em\u003e\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001; GGT 61 U/L (IQR 79) vs. 35 U/L (IQR 45), \u003cem\u003eP\u003c/em\u003e\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001; and bilirubin 0.8 mg/dL (IQR 0.6) vs 0.53 mg/dL (IQR 0.95), \u003cem\u003eP\u003c/em\u003e\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eIn terms of functional status, patients without active alcohol consumption showed higher rates of total and severe dependency according to both the Barthel and Lawton \u0026amp; Brody indices (\u003cem\u003eP\u003c/em\u003e\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001). Cognitive function was better preserved among alcohol consumers, who had lower rates of severe cognitive impairment (\u003cem\u003eP\u003c/em\u003e\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001). Additionally, alcohol consumers had a lower risk of sarcopenia and severe frailty compared to non-consumers (\u003cem\u003eP\u003c/em\u003e\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001 and p\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;0,015, respectively). In contrast, no significant differences in malnutrition risk were observed between groups based on CONUT score.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eClinical complications:\u003c/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eA total of 433 (47%) patients presented at least one of the recorded complications, being more frequent the presence of insomnia (31% of patients), followed by confusional syndrome (29%) and falls (4%). Regarding complications more likely related to active alcohol consumption, 9% of patients in this group developed withdrawal syndrome, 2% encephalopathy and 1% Wernicke\u0026acute;s syndrome. Complete data are showed in Table\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Tab3\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e3\u003c/span\u003e.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eIf we focus on patients with a history of alcohol use \u003cb\u003e(\u003c/b\u003eTable\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Tab4\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e4\u003c/span\u003e\u003cb\u003e)\u003c/b\u003e, they were more likely to develop withdrawal syndrome (\u003cem\u003eP\u003c/em\u003e\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001), Wernicke\u0026rsquo;s encephalopathy (\u003cem\u003eP\u003c/em\u003e\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001), falls (\u003cem\u003eP\u003c/em\u003e\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;0.012), and insomnia (\u003cem\u003eP\u003c/em\u003e\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001). However, there was no significant association between prior alcohol consumption and the occurrence of delirium, epileptic complications, or in-hospital mortality. Patients with active alcohol consumption \u003cb\u003e(\u003c/b\u003eTable\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Tab3\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e3\u003c/span\u003e\u003cb\u003e)\u003c/b\u003e had a significantly higher incidence of withdrawal syndrome (9% vs. 0.5%, \u003cem\u003eP\u003c/em\u003e\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001; 3 patients were classified with withdrawal syndrome who were not actively drinking were categorized as having withdrawal syndrome of unknown cause) and insomnia (36% vs. 29%, p\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;0.046). They also presented a higher frequency of falls during hospitalization (5.8% vs. 2.6%, \u003cem\u003eP\u0026thinsp;=\u003c/em\u003e\u0026thinsp;0.017). However, mortality was lower in patients with active alcohol consumption (5% vs. 10%, \u003cem\u003eP\u003c/em\u003e\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;0.006). Regarding patients withintensive daily consumption, 62% of them showed clinical complications, with high rates of insomnia and confusional syndrome. It is remarkable that the development of alcohol withdrawal syndrome was detected in 27% of patients in this group.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eIf we consider all the clinical complications analysed in global, the main variables linked to them in the univariate analysis \u003cb\u003e(\u003c/b\u003eTable\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Tab5\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e5\u003c/span\u003e\u003cb\u003e)\u003c/b\u003e were intensive daily consumption during lifetime, the presence of an AUD detected by both CAGE and AUDIT instruments, the existence of a severe grade of frailty, the use of benzodiazepines, opioids and neuroleptics during hospital admission and the diagnosis at discharge of infectious or neurological diseases.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"gridtable\"\u003e\u003ctable float=\"Yes\" id=\"Tab5\" border=\"1\"\u003e \u003ccaption language=\"En\"\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"CaptionNumber\"\u003eTable 5\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"CaptionContent\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eUnivariate analysis of variables associated with clinical complications.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003c/caption\u003e \u003ccolgroup cols=\"4\"\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c1\" colnum=\"1\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c2\" colnum=\"2\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c3\" colnum=\"3\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c4\" colnum=\"4\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cthead\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eAny clinical complication (433)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eNo clinical complication (483)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eP\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colspan=\"4\" nameend=\"c4\" namest=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eChronic conditions\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/thead\u003e \u003ctbody\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eChronic psychiatric disorder\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e49 (11.3%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e46 (9.5%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.374\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eActive cancer\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e40 (9.2%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e46 (9.5%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.882\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eChronic liver disease\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e15 (3.5%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e17 (3.5%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.964\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eChronic neurologic disease\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e146 (33.7%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e124 (25.7%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.008\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003ePolypharmacy\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e286 (82.9%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e355 (89%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.017\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"4\" nameend=\"c4\" namest=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eAlcohol consumption\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eLifetime heavy alcohol consumption\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e51 (11.8%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e31 (6.4%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.005\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eAny lifetime alcohol consumption\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e285 (65.8%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e299 (61.9%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.218\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eBarthel index\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;20 pts\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e57 (13.2%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e55 (11.4%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.412\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eCAGE\u0026thinsp;\u0026gt;\u0026thinsp;2 pts\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e44 (11.4%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e21 (4.7%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eAUDIT \u0026ge;8 pts\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e51 (12.9%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e17 (3.7%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"4\" nameend=\"c4\" namest=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eFunctional status\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eSevere frailty (Frail-VIG index\u0026thinsp;\u0026gt;\u0026thinsp;0.56)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e27 (6.2%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e10 (2.1%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.001\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eSevere cognitive impairment\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e77 (17.8%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e67 (13.9%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.104\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"4\" nameend=\"c4\" namest=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eAcute treatments during admission\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eOpioid treatment\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e91 (21%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e74 (15.3%\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.025\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eAntidepressant treatment\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e116 (26.8%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e110 (22.8%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.159\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eBenzodiazepine treatment\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e202 (46.7%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e135 (28%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eNeuroleptic treatment\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e245 (56.6%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e114 (23.6%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"4\" nameend=\"c4\" namest=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eDiagnosis at discharge\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eInfectious disease diagnosis\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e260 (60%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e243 (50.3%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.003\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eCardiovascular disease diagnosis\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e170 (39.3%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e197 (40.8%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.638\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eRespiratory disease diagnosis\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e88 (20.3%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e106 (21.9%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.548\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eNeurologic disease diagnosis\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e84 (19.4%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e30 (6.2%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/tbody\u003e \u003c/colgroup\u003e \u003ctfoot\u003e \u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd colspan=\"4\"\u003eVariables are presented as absolute frequencies (percentages) or mean (interquartile range) and were compared using the \u003cem\u003eχ\u003c/em\u003e\u003csup\u003e2\u003c/sup\u003e and Fisher\u0026rsquo;s exact tests for qualitative variables or Student\u0026acute;s T test, Mann-Whitney U test, or Kruskal-Wallis test for quantitative variables. AUDIT: Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test; CAGE: screening test for alcohol use disorder (acronym stands for Cut down, Annoyed, Guilty, and Eye-opener).\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/tfoot\u003e \u003c/table\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eA logistic regression analysis was performed to identify factors independently associated with the occurrence of any in-hospital complications (including delirium, withdrawal syndrome, Wernicke's encephalopathy, seizures, status, falls, and insomnia), excluding death, due the multiple factors that could be involved in this group of patients \u003cb\u003e(\u003c/b\u003eTable\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Tab6\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e6\u003c/span\u003e\u003cb\u003e).\u003c/b\u003e The results showed that an AUDIT score\u0026thinsp;\u0026ge;\u0026thinsp;8 was significantly associated with higher odds of complications (\u003cem\u003eP\u003c/em\u003e\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001; OR 3.8, 95% CI: 1.8\u0026ndash;8.3). In-hospital treatment with benzodiazepines (\u003cem\u003eP\u003c/em\u003e\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001; OR 2.3, 95% CI: 1.7\u0026ndash;3.2) or neuroleptics(\u003cem\u003eP\u003c/em\u003e\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001; OR 4.1, 95% CI: 2.9\u0026ndash;5.7), as well as discharge diagnoses of infection (\u003cem\u003eP\u003c/em\u003e\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;0.01; OR 1.7, 95% CI: 1.2\u0026ndash;2.3) or neurological conditions (\u003cem\u003eP\u003c/em\u003e\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001; OR 3.1, 95% CI: 1.9\u0026ndash;5.2), were also independently associated with the development of complications during hospitalization.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"gridtable\"\u003e\u003ctable float=\"Yes\" id=\"Tab6\" border=\"1\"\u003e \u003ccaption language=\"En\"\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"CaptionNumber\"\u003eTable 6\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"CaptionContent\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eLogistic regression analysis.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003c/caption\u003e \u003ccolgroup cols=\"4\"\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c1\" colnum=\"1\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c2\" colnum=\"2\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c3\" colnum=\"3\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c4\" colnum=\"4\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cthead\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eOR\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eIC 95%\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eP\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/thead\u003e \u003ctbody\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eSevere frailty\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3.05\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.34\u0026ndash;6.94\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.008\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eLifetime heavy alcohol consumption\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.88\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.39\u0026ndash;1.97\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.752\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eCAGE\u0026thinsp;\u0026gt;\u0026thinsp;2\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.23\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.51\u0026ndash;2.93\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.644\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eAUDIT \u0026ge;8\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3.87\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.81\u0026ndash;8.30\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eBenzodiazepine treatment\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.30\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.67\u0026ndash;3.18\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eNeuroleptic treatment\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e4.13\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3.00\u0026ndash;5.68\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eOpioid treatment\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.05\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.71\u0026ndash;1.57\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.805\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eInfectious disease diagnosis\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.67\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.22\u0026ndash;2.29\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.001\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eNeurological disease diagnosis\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3.14\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.89\u0026ndash;5.21\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/tbody\u003e \u003c/colgroup\u003e \u003ctfoot\u003e \u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd colspan=\"4\"\u003eOR: Odds Ratio; CI: Confidence Interval; AUDIT: Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test; CAGE: screening test for alcohol use disorder (acronym stands for Cut down, Annoyed, Guilty, and Eye-opener).\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/tfoot\u003e \u003c/table\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003c/p\u003e"},{"header":"DISCUSION","content":"\u003cp\u003eThe present work is, to our knowledge, the first one studying the relevance and implications of alcohol consumption in very elderly patients, which are not usually included in most registers [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR3\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e3\u003c/span\u003e]. Our results reflect that the proportion of patients over 80 years of age who actively consume alcohol is not negligible. Secondly, it shows that such consumption is associated with a higher number of in-hospital complications. Lastly, it highlights the utility of screening tools such as the AUDIT test to identify patients at increased risk of complications, allowing for the implementation of preventive strategies also in very elderly patients admitted to hospital due any reason.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eIn our cohort, up to 28% of patients over the age of 80 reported active alcohol consumption at the time of hospital admission. Previous literature specifically addressing alcohol consumption and its consequences in individuals of this advanced age is scarce or virtually non-existent. However, studies conducted in various countries that include populations aged over 60 or 65 years suggest that, despite increasing age, a proportion of individuals continue to consume alcohol [\u003cspan additionalcitationids=\"CR23\" citationid=\"CR22\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e22\u003c/span\u003e\u0026ndash;\u003cspan citationid=\"CR24\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e24\u003c/span\u003e]. Moreover, our findings are consistent with national health surveys, in which 30% of individuals over the age of 80 reported active alcohol use [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR9\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e9\u003c/span\u003e]. However, alcohol consumption (or its absence) was documented in only 36% of clinical records, revealing a clear lack of awareness regarding this issue in very old adults. Previous reports conducted by our group showed that alcohol consumption was recorded in 59% of clinical records of patients of any age admitted for any reason [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR25\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e25\u003c/span\u003e]. This difference could reflect a clinical assumption from physicians that alcohol use in this population is either non-existent or insignificant, which may lead to under recognition of potentially serious complications, as will be discussed further below. It is also remarkable the high prevalence of chronic prescriptions of benzodiazepines, neuroleptics, antidepressants and opioids, also in the active alcohol consumption group and which was even increased during admission. The potential interaction between these and other drugs and alcohol and the extremely high prevalence of polypharmacy in our cohort should be cause for alarm, giving the potential damage that these combinations can cause [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR26\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e26\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR27\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e27\u003c/span\u003e].\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eAnother notable finding is the evident gender gap in alcohol use. Alcohol consumption was more prevalent among men, who also reported higher average intake in standard drink units and a greater prevalence of alcohol use disorders. This gender difference has been consistently observed in studies conducted across various countries over the years and can likely be explained by traditional gender role (particularly relevant given the average age of our sample) in which alcohol consumption is viewed as an undesirable trait in women [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR28\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e28\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR29\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e29\u003c/span\u003e] and even exists a hidden alcohol consumption in women due to cultural, social and educational barriers [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR30\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e30\u003c/span\u003e]. Moreover, women clinical records in our study only include alcohol consumption in 29% of cases, reflecting also a lack of interest from physicians in the potential impact of alcohol consumption in women health.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eAn apparently paradoxical finding of our study is that very elderly patients with active alcohol consumption showed better functional and cognitive status. This observation should not be interpreted as a protective effect of alcohol, but rather as the result of biases, particularly the healthy survivor bias and the sick quitter effect. Individuals who maintain alcohol consumption into very old age are more likely to represent a functionally fitter subgroup, whereas abstinence in this population often reflects underlying disability, cognitive decline or chronic disease burden [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR31\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e31\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR32\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e32\u003c/span\u003e].\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eAlcohol consumption patterns, our data reflects the normalization of daily alcohol consumption even in very elderly patients, which fits with the data extracted from the European Health Survey in Spain [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR9\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e9\u003c/span\u003e]. Nevertheless, it is surprising the number of patients with intensive daily consumption (9% in our series), which is even higher than previous reports regarding to population over 60 years old [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR33\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e33\u003c/span\u003e] and similar to percentages described in the only previous reported we have found including patients over 80 years old [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR34\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e34\u003c/span\u003e]. This group presented a higher incidence of clinical complications, which reinforces the relevance of a correct quantification of alcohol consumption in elderly patients at admission.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eIf we focus on alcohol use disorder, it is also remarkable that 8% of patients achieve AUD criteria through AUDIT test, in line to previous reports, again, in younger populations. The presence of AUD in older patients is linked to a higher prevalence of confusional syndrome, falls, cognitive impairment and even death depending on series [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR7\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e7\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR34\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e34\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR35\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e35\u003c/span\u003e]. In this sense, the approach once an AUD is suspected in elderly patients could be complex due to comorbidity, polypharmacy, frailty and even the interaction between alcohol and most wide-used medications [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR3\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e3\u003c/span\u003e]. AUDIT-C test and other tools have been validated to be implemented in elderly patients and its use should be generalized in both inpatients and ambulatory patients [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR36\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e36\u003c/span\u003e]. Moreover, in light to our results, AUDIT test emerges as a key tool to detect those high-risk patients at admission regarding the association between the detection of a potential AUD and the development of clinical complications. This is, to our knowledge, the first study which demonstrates its usefulness in very elderly patients.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eWhen analysing clinical complications, nearly a half of the included patients presented some clinical complication and those were more frequent in patients with alcohol consumption, especially those who presented a heavy alcohol consumption. The prevalence of specific alcohol-related complications, like alcohol withdrawal syndrome or Wernicke\u0026acute;s encephalopathy was relatively high in this group but also falls, insomnia and confusional syndrome, which reflects the high relevance of alcohol active consumption in the evolution of elderly patients during hospital admission. Although alcohol consumption is a well-known risk factor for delirium during admission [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR37\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e37\u003c/span\u003e], there are lack of data regarding very elderly patients. Nevertheless, it seems that in elderly patients the risk threshold for clinical complications related to alcohol consumption could be lower than in general population, in line with previous reports and our own results [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR38\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e38\u003c/span\u003e]. Thus, our results could reinforce the need to rethink the thresholds for high-risk consumption in this population.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe main limitations of our study could be the existence of some usual bias related to alcohol consumption investigation. In a high percentage of cases, the interview was conducted through or directly to a relative, which were mostly their descendants and probably did not properly remember remote alcohol consumption, increasing the risk of both abstainer and sick quitter bias [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR39\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e39\u003c/span\u003e]. In this sense, our results could also be influenced by the healthy survivor bias, moreover when we included only very elderly patients, and a high percentage of patients with alcohol-related health problems do not achieve this age [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR7\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e7\u003c/span\u003e]. Despite these potential limitations, we believe that our results provide a valuable information that can be applied in daily clinical practice to correctly identify high-risk elderly patients during hospital admissions.\u003c/p\u003e"},{"header":"CONCLUSIONS","content":"\u003cp\u003eOur study shows that active alcohol consumption in very elderly patients who are admitted by any cause is frequent, usually undervalued and not included in the clinical history, especially in women. A correct quantification of alcohol consumption and patterns in these patients is mandatory at admission to better prevent clinical complications. Our results showed that the evaluation of a potential alcohol use disorder through simple tools like AUDIT test could be useful to a better care planification during hospital admission, since the detection of a possible AUD in very elderly patients is linked to a higher risk of clinical complications.\u003c/p\u003e"},{"header":"Declarations","content":"\u003cp\u003e \u003ch2\u003eAUTHORS DISCLOSURES\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eAll authors participated in the conception and design of the study and acquisition of data. I F-C and I N-V developed the analysis and interpretation of data. I F-C drafted the article and all authors revised it critically for important intellectual content. All authors gave their final approval of the version to be submitted.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cstrong\u003eCONFLICT OF INTEREST:\u003c/strong\u003e \u003cp\u003eAll authors declare no conflict of interests.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/p\u003e\u003ch2\u003eFUNDING:\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eNo funding was required to the development of this work.\u003c/p\u003e\u003ch2\u003eAuthor Contribution\u003c/h2\u003e\u003cp\u003eAll authors participated in the conception and design of the study and acquisition of data. I F-C and I N-V developed the analysis and interpretation of data. I F-C drafted the article and all authors revised it critically for important intellectual content. All authors gave their final approval of the version to be submitted.\u003c/p\u003e\u003ch2\u003eData Availability\u003c/h2\u003e\u003cp\u003eAll data will be available upon request to authors.\u003c/p\u003e"},{"header":"References","content":"\u003col\u003e\u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003ePeacock A, Leung J, Larney S et al (2018) Global statistics on alcohol, tobacco and illicit drug use: 2017 status report. Addiction 113:1905\u0026ndash;1926. \u003cspan class=\"ExternalRef\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"RefSource\"\u003ehttps://doi.org/10.1111/add.14234\u003c/span\u003e\u003cspan address=\"10.1111/add.14234\" targettype=\"DOI\" class=\"RefTarget\"\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eWorld Health Organization (2018) Global status report on alcohol and health 2018. 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BMC Med 21:228. \u003cspan class=\"ExternalRef\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"RefSource\"\u003ehttps://doi.org/10.1186/s12916-023-02911-w\u003c/span\u003e\u003cspan address=\"10.1186/s12916-023-02911-w\" targettype=\"DOI\" class=\"RefTarget\"\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/li\u003e\u003c/ol\u003e"}],"fulltextSource":"","fullText":"","funders":[],"hasAdminPriorityOnWorkflow":false,"hasManuscriptDocX":true,"hasOptedInToPreprint":true,"hasPassedJournalQc":"","hasAnyPriority":false,"hideJournal":false,"highlight":"","institution":"","isAcceptedByJournal":true,"isAuthorSuppliedPdf":false,"isDeskRejected":"","isHiddenFromSearch":false,"isInQc":false,"isInWorkflow":false,"isPdf":false,"isPdfUpToDate":true,"isWithdrawnOrRetracted":false,"journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"aging-clinical-and-experimental-research","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"externalIdentity":"acer","sideBox":"Learn more about [Aging Clinical and Experimental Research](http://link.springer.com/journal/40520)","snPcode":"40520","submissionUrl":"https://submission.nature.com/new-submission/40520/3","title":"Aging Clinical and Experimental Research","twitterHandle":"","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":true,"editorialSystem":"stoa","reportingPortfolio":"Springer Hybrid","inReviewEnabled":true,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":false},"keywords":"very elderly adults, alcohol consumption, alcohol use disorder, in-hospital complications, screening","lastPublishedDoi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-8566710/v1","lastPublishedDoiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-8566710/v1","license":{"name":"CC BY 4.0","url":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/"},"manuscriptAbstract":"\u003ch2\u003eBackground\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eAlcohol consumption among adults aged\u0026thinsp;\u0026ge;\u0026thinsp;80 remains understudied, despite their vulnerability to alcohol-related harm. We aimed to assess the prevalence of alcohol use and AUD and to examine associations with in-hospital complications in very elderly hospitalized patients.\u003c/p\u003e\u003ch2\u003eMethods\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eThis was a prospective, multicenter observational study conducted from June 2022 to July 2023 across 19 hospitals. Consecutive patients aged\u0026thinsp;\u0026ge;\u0026thinsp;80 admitted to Internal Medicine departments were included. Alcohol consumption was ascertained via structured interview and screening tools (AUDIT, CAGE). Data on comorbidities, medications, functional status, laboratory parameters, and in-hospital complications were collected. Logistic regression identified independent predictors of complications.\u003c/p\u003e\u003ch2\u003eResults\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eA total of 916 patients (median age 86 years; 54% female) were analysed. Active alcohol use at admission was reported by 28%, and 8% met AUDIT criteria for AUD. Documentation of alcohol use in medical records was present in 36%. Overall, 47% developed at least one complication; withdrawal syndrome (9%) and insomnia (36%) were significantly more frequent among active drinkers. Independent predictors of complications included AUDIT\u0026thinsp;\u0026ge;\u0026thinsp;8 (OR 3.8; 95%CI 1.8\u0026ndash;8.3), in-hospital benzodiazepine use (OR 2.3; 95%CI 1.7\u0026ndash;3.2), neuroleptic use (OR 4.1; 95%CI 2.9\u0026ndash;5.7), and discharge diagnoses of infection or neurological disease.\u003c/p\u003e\u003ch2\u003eConclusions\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eAlcohol consumption is common but under-recognised in patients aged\u0026thinsp;\u0026ge;\u0026thinsp;80 and is associated with increased risk of in‐hospital complications. Routine screening with AUDIT in this group may identify high-risk individuals and inform preventive strategies to mitigate adverse hospital outcomes.\u003c/p\u003e","manuscriptTitle":"Alcohol use and in-hospital complications in patients aged 80 years and older: a multicentre observational study in Spain.","msid":"","msnumber":"","nonDraftVersions":[{"code":1,"date":"2026-01-27 06:44:53","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-8566710/v1","editorialEvents":[{"type":"communityComments","content":0},{"type":"decision","content":"Revision requested","date":"2026-02-02T08:41:34+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""},{"type":"editorInvitedReview","content":"","date":"2026-01-31T13:41:49+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"reviewerAgreed","content":"265863080269792321808783619780691841111","date":"2026-01-23T14:50:58+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"editorInvitedReview","content":"","date":"2026-01-22T03:41:50+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"reviewerAgreed","content":"316097623322227493323324151773220730577","date":"2026-01-21T06:35:52+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"reviewerAgreed","content":"232192738796358656695235648576665058783","date":"2026-01-21T02:22:40+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"editorInvitedReview","content":"","date":"2026-01-20T13:24:07+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"reviewerAgreed","content":"291442251508956152086508130925537694595","date":"2026-01-20T09:26:49+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"reviewerAgreed","content":"257158852089257619234558378097117911787","date":"2026-01-20T01:45:51+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"reviewerAgreed","content":"61701553515963284558695847259923514431","date":"2026-01-19T11:52:52+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"reviewerAgreed","content":"149652884792300628267168727227910308234","date":"2026-01-19T06:05:21+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"reviewersInvited","content":"","date":"2026-01-19T05:51:33+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""},{"type":"editorAssigned","content":"","date":"2026-01-15T08:35:05+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""},{"type":"checksComplete","content":"","date":"2026-01-10T13:17:35+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""},{"type":"submitted","content":"Aging Clinical and Experimental Research","date":"2026-01-10T07:57:46+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""}],"status":"published","journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"aging-clinical-and-experimental-research","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"externalIdentity":"acer","sideBox":"Learn more about [Aging Clinical and Experimental Research](http://link.springer.com/journal/40520)","snPcode":"40520","submissionUrl":"https://submission.nature.com/new-submission/40520/3","title":"Aging Clinical and Experimental Research","twitterHandle":"","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":true,"editorialSystem":"stoa","reportingPortfolio":"Springer Hybrid","inReviewEnabled":true,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":false}}],"origin":"","ownerIdentity":"b091865f-80a9-42ed-a67b-531a37025166","owner":[],"postedDate":"January 27th, 2026","published":true,"recentEditorialEvents":[],"rejectedJournal":[],"revision":"","amendment":"","status":"published-in-journal","subjectAreas":[],"tags":[],"updatedAt":"2026-04-07T16:02:45+00:00","versionOfRecord":{"articleIdentity":"rs-8566710","link":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s40520-026-03373-9","journal":{"identity":"aging-clinical-and-experimental-research","isVorOnly":false,"title":"Aging Clinical and Experimental Research"},"publishedOn":"2026-04-02 15:57:40","publishedOnDateReadable":"April 2nd, 2026"},"versionCreatedAt":"2026-01-27 06:44:53","video":"","vorDoi":"10.1007/s40520-026-03373-9","vorDoiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s40520-026-03373-9","workflowStages":[]},"version":"v1","identity":"rs-8566710","journalConfig":"researchsquare"},"__N_SSP":true},"page":"/article/[identity]/[[...version]]","query":{"redirect":"/article/rs-8566710","identity":"rs-8566710","version":["v1"]},"buildId":"XKTyCvWXoU3ODBz1xrDgd","isFallback":false,"isExperimentalCompile":false,"dynamicIds":[84888],"gssp":true,"scriptLoader":[]}