NIAAA 2‐question screen can predict subsequent CUD in youth

A recent study shows that even low‐risk alcohol use by adolescents is associated with subsequent cannabis use disorder (CUD). The analysis, “Adolescent alcohol use predicts cannabis use over a three year follow‐up period,” by James Linakis, M.D., professor of pediatrics and emergency medicine at Brown University, and colleagues, is based on the use of the two‐question screen from the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) when young people present in the emergency department (ED). The screener is already known to work for assessing alcohol use in teens, but this new study suggests it is better to ask questions about both alcohol and cannabis use in these patients.