SynthesisDrug and alcohol review2022
Changes in alcohol use during the COVID-19 pandemic in Europe: A meta-analysis of observational studies.
Synthesis in Drug and alcohol review, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 78 papers.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
78 citing papers in PubMed.
- Alcohol misuse and health-related behaviors among people with HIV during the COVID-19 stay-at-home directive: an ALIVE-Ex sub-study.Alcohol and alcoholism (Oxford, Oxfordshire) · 2025Trial
- Personality variability during development predicts alcohol use before and during the COVID-19 pandemic.Scientific reports · 2026Article
- Exploring Associations Between Substance Use, Self-Regulated Learning Practices, and Academic Challenges at Five Canadian Universities.Journal of college student retention : research, theory & practice · 2026Article
- GPAM mediates mitochondrial dysfunction and the progression of alcoholic liver disease through lipid remodeling.Science advances · 2026Article
- Living Alone as a Persistent Risk Factor for Smoking and High-Risk Drinking: A Three-Year Repeated Cross-Sectional Analysis Before and During the COVID-19 Pandemic in the Republic of Korea.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- Has alcohol consumption in England returned to pre-COVID-19 pandemic levels? A monthly population study, 2014 to 2024.Addiction (Abingdon, England) · 2026Article
- Causes and frequency of psychiatric counselling requests in hospitalized patients before and during the COVID-19 pandemic in Sabzevar, Iran between 2019-2020.BMC psychiatry · 2026Article
- Demographic variation in weekly alcohol use across countries in the Global Flourishing Study.Communications medicine · 2026Article
- Early socially isolated rats of both sexes reduce alcohol consumption and seeking by the Galanin (1-15) and naltrexone combination.Frontiers in pharmacology · 2026Article
- Socio-cultural context as a protective factor: regional disparities in adolescent mental health in Mexico during the COVID-19 pandemic.Frontiers in child and adolescent psychiatry · 2026Article
- Deaths of despair before and during the COVID-19 pandemic: a comparative analysis of 27 European countries and the United States.Frontiers in public health · 2026Article
- Past-month alcohol use in relation to the COVID-19 lockdown in 13 Indian states and union territories: gender, socioeconomic status, and state alcohol policy differences.Frontiers in public health · 2026Article
- Interrupted Time Series Analysis of Alcohol Use Disorder Treatment Utilisation During the Coronavirus Pandemic in Hamburg, Germany.Drug and alcohol review · 2026Article
- Factors influencing complete abstinence during Thailand's temporary alcohol abstinence campaign.Scientific reports · 2025Article
- Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on trends in health conditions associated with alcohol among patients with hypertension in Sweden.Scientific reports · 2025Article
- Estimating recent trends in alcohol sales in the United Kingdom from alcohol duty revenue.Addiction (Abingdon, England) · 2025Article
- Excess Alcohol-Induced Hospitalisations and Deaths During the First Year of the COVID-19 Pandemic in Australia.Drug and alcohol review · 2025Article
- Acute Variceal Bleeding During the SARS-CoV-2 Pandemic: A National Multicenter Observational Study.Journal of clinical medicine · 2025Article
- COVID-19 Pandemic Experiences and Hazardous Alcohol Use: Findings of Higher and Lower Risk in a Heavy-Drinking Midwestern State.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2025Article
- COVID-19 Pandemic and Sleep Health in Polish Female Students.Journal of clinical medicine · 2025Article
18 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
11 authors.
Funding
Abstract
issuesNumerous studies have examined the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on alcohol use changes in Europe, with concerns raised regarding increased use and related harms. APPROACH: We synthesised observational studies published between 1 January 2020 and 31 September 2021 on self-reported changes in alcohol use associated with COVID-19. Electronic databases were searched for studies evaluating individual data from European general and clinical populations. We identified 646 reports, of which 56 general population studies were suitable for random-effects meta-analyses of proportional differences in alcohol use changes. Variations by time, sub-region and study quality were assessed in subsequent meta-regressions. Additional 16 reports identified were summarised narratively. KEY
findingsCompiling reports measuring changes in overall alcohol use, slightly more individuals indicated a decrease than an increase in their alcohol use during the pandemic [3.8%, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.00-7.6%]. Decreases were also reported more often than increases in drinking frequency (8.0%, 95% CI 2.7-13.2%), quantity consumed (12.2%, 95% CI 8.3-16.2%) and heavy episodic drinking (17.7%, 95% CI 13.6-21.8%). Among people with pre-existing high drinking levels/alcohol use disorder, high-level drinking patterns appear to have solidified or intensified. IMPLICATIONS: Pandemic-related changes in alcohol use may be associated with pre-pandemic drinking levels. Increases among high-risk alcohol users are concerning, suggesting a need for ongoing monitoring and support from relevant health-care services.
conclusionOur findings suggest that more people reduced their alcohol use in Europe than increased it since the onset of the pandemic. However high-quality studies examining specific change mechanisms at the population level are lacking.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.