Aplicação do questionário CAGE para detecção de alcoolismo entre bombeiros militares de Manaus

Abstract

Introduction: Alcohol consumption continues to lead the ranking of risk factors for diseases in the world, the extent of its impacts must be known through analyzes that consider the adverse effects of use on the physical and mental health of the drinkers, as well as the indirect effects in their social context. According to the International Labor Organization, 20% to 25% of workplace accidents around the world involve people who were under the influence of alcohol. Objective: To verify the internal consistency of the CAGE questionnaire for detecting alcoholism among military firefighters in Manaus. Methods: Cross-sectional study, carried out with military firefighters from the Amazonas Military Fire Department, based in the city of Manaus, state of Amazonas. A self-administered and standardized questionnaire was used, which assessed sociodemographic data. Problematic alcohol use was analyzed by CAGE, a tracking instrument that uses the acronym referring to its four questions: Cut Down, Annoyed by Criticism, Guilty and Eye-Opener. Results: The only sociodemographic association found with CAGE was marital status, (χ2(4) =15.97, p=0.0003), with married status being the only one that was influenced by the association. No associations were observed between CAGE and gender (χ2(1) =0.44, p=0.50). Likewise, no associations were found between CAGE and ethnicity (χ2(2) =1.34, p=0.51), number of children (χ2(1) =2.60 p=0.10), and education level (χ2(3) = 5.47 p=0.14). Conclusion: CAGE proved to be a questionnaire that was easy to apply and understand among the studied population. Making it possible to determine the characterization of the sociodemographic profile of it, in addition to identifying the consistency of the questionnaire, for the results of alcoholism among military firefighters in Manaus. It was also possible to verify the association between the condition of alcohol consumption (high or low) and sociodemographic data.