Assessing the Costs of Excessive Alcohol Consumption in Minnesota.

INTRODUCTION: Alcohol consumption, particularly excessive drinking, incurs a high societal cost. This study aimed to apply current state-specific data from 1 state, Minnesota, to established national methods for estimating the societal cost of excessive alcohol consumption for 2 purposes: first, to update the cost estimate for the state and, second, to understand the potential benefits of using state-specific data versus a national apportionment strategy for economic burden estimates. METHODS: In 2021, established methods were used to apply alcohol-attributable fractions for health care, lost productivity, crime, and other effects (e.g., motor vehicle crashes) to 2019 Minnesota data. The main outcome measure was the annual prevalence cost (incurred and paid each year) of excessive alcohol use in Minnesota from the societal perspective. Secondary outcome measures were the cost of specific outcomes (e.g., crime), different types of consumption (e.g., drinking during pregnancy), the cost to government payers, and the cost per drink. RESULTS: The societal cost of alcohol use in Minnesota in 2019 was nearly $8 billion dollars (2019 USD) or $1,383 per resident. This estimate is substantially higher than a previous estimate on the basis of apportionment of a national estimate. CONCLUSIONS: The cost of alcohol use in Minnesota is considerable. Geographically specific and current cost estimates can inform decision making about the public health impact of excessive alcohol use and the cost effectiveness of prevention strategies. Evidence-based prevention strategies to reduce alcohol use include increased alcohol taxes, enhanced enforcement of laws prohibiting sales to minors, and electronic screening and brief intervention.

Predicting trauma admissions: the effect of weather, weekday, and other variables.

One of the challenges all hospitals, especially designated trauma centers, face is how to make sure they have adequate staffing on various days of the week and at various times of the year. A number of studies have explored whether factors such as weather, temporal variation, holidays, and events that draw mass gatherings may be useful for predicting patient volume. This article looks at the effects of weather, mass gatherings, and calendar variables on daily trauma admissions at the three Level I trauma hospitals in the Minneapolis-St. Paul metropolitan area. Using ARIMA statistical modeling, we found that weekends, summer, lack of rain, and snowfall were all predictive of daily trauma admissions; holidays and mass gatherings such as sporting events were not. The forecasting model was successful in reflecting the pattern of trauma admissions; however, it's usefulness was limited in that the predicted range of daily trauma admissions was much narrower than the observed number of admissions. Nonetheless, the observed pattern of increased admission in the summer months and year-round on Saturdays should be helpful in resource planning.

Hospital-treated dog bites in Minnesota, 1998-2005.

This paper is the first to describe the incidence of hospital-treated dog bites in Minnesota using hospital discharge data supplemented with medical record review. The rate of hospital-treated dog bites rose 40% during the 8-year period studied, with the largest growth being seen in the number of emergency department (ED) visits. The highest rates of both hospitalization and ED treatment occurred among children ages 1 to 4 years. In most instances (75%), the victim was familiar with the dog(s) involved. The dog bites most often occurred in the home (48%) and yard (18%). Our findings emphasize the importance of physicians, especially pediatricians and family physicians, counseling parents about the importance of supervising their children when they are around dogs and teaching them safe behaviors around animals. Finally, this study validates the value of hospital discharge data for surveillance of hospital-treated dog bites.

Sparklers, smoke bombs, and snakes, oh my! Effect of legislation on fireworks-related injuries in Minnesota, 1999-2005.

In 2002, Minnesota changed its law banning all fireworks and allowed for nonexplosive, nonaerial fireworks. This article reports that hospitals have seen a steady rise in the number of patients treated for injuries related to fireworks, including a 100% increase in the number of annual fireworks-related injuries between the years 1999 and 2005 based on hospital discharge data.