The Rise of New Alcoholic Games Among Adolescents and the Consequences in the Emergency Department: Observational Retrospective Study.
Stefania BarbieriLuca OmizzoloAlberto TredeseGianna VettoreAlberto CalaonAstrid Ursula BehrRossella SnenghiMassimo MontisciRosa Maria GaudioAndrea PaoliVincenzo PietrantonioJacopo SantiDaniele DonatoGiovanni CarrettaAnnalisa DolcetPaolo FeltraccoPublished in: JMIR pediatrics and parenting (2018)
Drinking games encourage young people to consume large quantities of alcohol within a short period of time putting them at risk of alcohol poisoning, which can potentially lead to accidental injuries, unsafe sex, suicide, sexual assault, and traffic accidents. The spread of these games through the internet and social networks is becoming a serious health problem facing physicians and medical professionals every day, especially in the ED; for this reason, it is necessary to be aware of the risks represented by such behaviors in order to recognize and identify preliminary symptoms and develop useful prevention programs. The strategic role of emergency services is to monitor and define the problem right from the start in order to control the epidemic, support planning, coordinate the delivery of assistance in the emergency phase, and provide medical education. Hospital-based interdisciplinary health care researchers collected specific data on hazardous drinking practices linked to evaluation of increased alcohol-related consequences and cases admitted to the ED.