Alcohol, drugs and health

Alcohol, Drugs and Health – Overview

Alcohol is the most commonly used psychoactive substance in Norway and globally, and remains a major contributor to disease, injury and premature death. In addition to its health consequences, alcohol use is associated with substantial negative impacts on families, social networks and society at large. It is associated with more than 200 diseases and conditions. Even low levels of alcohol consumption have been linked to increased health risks and cancer.

Alcohol use patterns are changing, particularly among older adults, who consume more alcohol than previous generations. Age-related physiological changes, combined with the use of medications, increase vulnerability to adverse effects even at relatively low levels of consumption.

Among hospitalized patients, the use of psychoactive medicinal drugs is common, often in combination with alcohol or other substances. For many patients, hospital admission is related to underlying or previously unrecognized alcohol or substance use, either as a contributing factor to illness or as a condition complicating treatment and recovery. Combined substance use increases the risk of complications, addiction, overdose, and poorer health outcomes.

Prevention through early identification

From a preventive health perspective, early identification of risky alcohol use and problematic use of medicinal or illicit substances is essential, even when diagnostic criteria for addiction are not met. Systematic screening using validated questionnaires and biomarkers enables identification of patients at risk and supports tailored interventions.

Our research focus

The SUHO research group investigates the health consequences of alcohol and substance use among hospitalized patients. Our research includes screening, use of biological biomarkers, evaluation of tailored interventions, and studies of healthcare professionals’ experiences and barriers to addressing substance use.

Our research methods include toxicological analysis, biomarker analysis, questionnaire data, patient health records, and national health registries.

Through national and international collaborations, we aim to generate knowledge that improves prevention, clinical practice, and patient outcomes.

Ongoing projects

AlcoTail – Screening for harmful alcohol and substance use among somatic patients and tailored interventions in Norwegian hospitals

AlcoTail is a multicenter research project examining the implementation and effects of systematic screening and tailored interventions for harmful alcohol and substance use among patients admitted to somatic hospital departments in Oslo and Trondheim, Norway.

The project evaluates new guidelines where patients with potentially harmful consumption of alcohol and psychoactive substances are offered tailored interventions, including information, brief interventions and treatment. AlcoTail is conducted in collaboration between Oslo University Hospital, St. Olavs Hospital Trust, Lovisenberg Diaconal Hospital, University of South-Eastern Norway, and The City of Oslo.

The project is funded by the Research Council of Norway.

Work packages

WP1 – Alcohol intervention:
To evaluate the impact of systematic alcohol-use screening and tailored interventions among patients admitted to medical wards on alcohol consumption, health outcomes and use of health services, including potential differences across socio-economic groups, using PEth measurements and AUDIT-4 assessments.

WP2 – Drug use intervention:
To determine the impact of implementing systematic screening for psychoactive drug use among medical inpatients and tailored interventions on patients’ drug use, health outcomes and use of health services, including changes in prescribed psychoactive drugs and use of psychoactive substances assessed through prescription data and repeated sample analyses.

WP3 – Health status, substance use and the use of healthcare services among people with severe substance use:
To identify and describe physical and mental health status, cognitive function, potential risk factors for overdoses and patterns of alcohol and substance use among people with severe ongoing substance use, and to examine the use of healthcare services, and course of treatment in specialist and primary healthcare services one and five years after assessment.

WP4 – Implementation processes:
To explore experiences, needs and perspectives of patients, healthcare professionals and policy makers related to the implementation of screening and tailored interventions, and to examine how access to addiction services is planned for and facilitated across healthcare levels.

WP5 – Health economics:
To assess the cost-effectiveness of the intervention by comparing healthcare costs, resource use, medication use and disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) before and after implementation at one-year follow-up.

Project leadership

Anners Lerdal, Lovisenberg Diaconal Hospital

Stig Tore Bogstrand, Oslo University Hospital

Work package leaders

WP1 – Alcohol intervention: Stig Tore Bogstrand (Oslo University Hospital)
WP2 – Drug use intervention: Hilde Marie Erøy Edvardsen (Oslo University Hospital)
WP3 – People with severe substance use: Linda Wüsthoff (Oslo University Hospital)
WP4 – Implementation processes: Thomas Tjelta (University of South-Eastern Norway)
WP5 – Health economics: Gudrun Bjørnelv and Christina Edwards (St. Olavs Hospital)

SUScreen – Substance Use Screening in the Arctic Region

Alcohol, psychoactive medicinal drugs and illicit substances among hospitalized patients in Greenland and Finnmark, Norway

SUScreen is a project focusing on alcohol use, psychoactive medicinal drug use, and illicit substance use among hospitalized patients in Arctic regions. The project also examines how alcohol and substance use are associated with adverse childhood experiences and suicidal behavior.

The project includes patients admitted to hospitals in Nuuk (Greenland) and Kirkenes (Norway), as well as ambulatory patients attending the Steno Diabetes Centre in Nuuk.

The aim of SUScreen is to increase knowledge about substance use patterns and to explore regional challenges related to screening, treatment and prevention in rural Arctic populations with limited access to healthcare services. The project is conducted through international collaboration with partner institutions in Greenland and Norway.

The project is funded by The Ministry of Health and Care Services and The Arctic Council.

Project leader

Benedicte Jørgenrud, Oslo University Hospital

AlcoScreen – Alcohol Screening in the Barents Region

Alcohol use among hospitalized patients in Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania

AlcoScreen is a project focusing on the prevalence and patterns of alcohol use among hospitalized patients in Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. Alcohol is a major preventable risk factor for disease and an important contributor to morbidity and premature mortality in Europe.

The project uses standardized questionnaires and the alcohol biomarker phosphatidylethanol (PEth) to assess harmful alcohol use among medical patients admitted to hospitals in Pärnu and Tartu (Estonia), Riga (Latvia) and Vilnius (Lithuania). AlcoScreen is conducted through collaboration between Oslo University Hospital and partner institutions in the Baltic countries, with the aim of improving screening practices and prevention of alcohol-related health consequences in healthcare.

The project is funded by The Ministry of Health and Care Services and The Northern Dimension Partnership in Public Health and Social Well-being.

Project leader

Anna Armika Tussilago Nyman, Oslo University Hospital

Previous projects

Alcohol, Drugs and Somatic Health
Alcohol, Drugs and Injuries
Addressing harmful alcohol use in the healthcare service

PhD students

Annebeth Tisjø – AlcoTail / WP 1 (Oslo University Hospital)
Anu Kivi – AlcoScreen (Tervisekassa, Estonia)
Danil Gamboa - Alcohol, Drugs and Somatic Health (Lovisenberg Diaconal Hospital)
Maria Seferowicz – AlcoTail / WP 2 (Lovisenberg Diaconal Hospital)
Nina Auestad – AlcoTail / WP 3 (Oslo Municipality) - Graduated 2026
Saranda Kabashi - Alcohol, Drugs and Somatic Health (Oslo University Hospital) - Graduated 2025
Thomas Wilson – Alcohol, Drugs and Injuries (Finnmark hospital trust)

Collaboration

Lovisenberg Diaconal Hospital
Rebulican Center for Addictive Disorders (RCAD), Lithuania
Estonian Health Insurance Fund (EHIF), Estonia
National Centre of Mental Health (NCMH), Latvia
The National Knowledge Center on Substance Abuse (Allorfik), Greenland
The Finnmark Hospital Trust, Norway
Steno Diabetes Center, Greenland
Sámi Norwegian National Advisory Unit on Mental Health and Substance Use (SANKS), Norway

Information material - patient care

Alcohol Use and Health, a leaflet with information and recommendations

Press and Media Reports