Impact of alcohol and drug dependence among hospitalized patients with cancers of the lip, oral cavity and pharynx.

Abstract

e18032 Background: Alcohol and drug dependence is one of the most often seen addiction in the US and we are unaware of the impact of those addictions in the hospitalized cancer patients. As alcohol addiction is one of the common risk factors for cancers of the lip, oral cavity, and pharynx (CLOP), and further little is known about the impact of drug and alcohol dependence on clinical outcome when hospitalized for treatment, and specifically its associations with patient characteristics, burden of illness, and clinical outcomes. Methods: We utilized national inpatient database from 2021 to examine patient and clinical characteristics. We used generalized linear models to evaluate the association of alcohol/drug dependence and the health-related outcomes such as length of stay (LOS), total charge, neurological outcomes, weight loss, fluid and electrolyte imbalance (FED), and depression. Results: We identified 2520 (weighted, original estimates) patients with drug dependence (DD) among 55095 (weighted, original estimates) CLOP patients, and 4600 (weighted, original estimates) patients with alcohol dependence (AD) among 53015 (weighted, original estimates) CLOP patients. AD and DD CLOP patients were associated with increased LOS (aOR 1.47, 95%CI: 1.27-1.68, aOR 1.92, 95%CI: 1.61, 2.30), weight loss (aOR 1.28, 95%CI: 1.08-1.5, aOR 2.47, 95%CI: 1.98, 3.09), depression (aOR 1.88, 95%CI: 1.58-2.25, aOR 1.40, 95%CI: 1.10-1.78), and total charge (aOR 1.18, 95%CI 1.07-1.31, aOR 1.40, 95%CI 1.22-1.60), neurological disorders (aOR 1.67, 95%CI: 1.36-2.06), CPD (aOR 1.71, 95%CI: 1.45-2.01), and FED (aOR 1.30 vs 95%CI: 1.09-1.55) compared to nonDD-CLOP patients. compared to nonAD and nonDD CLOP patients respectively. AD-CLOP patients also reported unemployment (aOR 3.82, 95%CI: 1.57-9.29), homelessness (aOR 3.93, 95%CI: 2.06-7.46). Conclusions: Alcohol and drug dependence are associated with negative outcomes in the real-world. In the US, this is associated with multiple health outcome disparities. Incorporation of drug and alcohol dependency screenings such as urine drug testing can be utilized as a step to reduce complications in hospitalized patients. Drug testing can also be used during treatment to monitor adherence to current cancer treatment plans. Increased care, support, and resources as well as appropriate treatment and management for those with AD and DD can work to reduce negative health outcomes that are associated.