Alcohol-related hepatitis death rates during pandemic up by 24% as young people turned to the bottle

11 Jul 2023 --- An investigation found the drive in alcohol sales during the COVID-19 pandemic simultaneously increased hospital admissions for alcohol-related hepatitis. From March to April 2020, online liquor sales grew 262%, according to the researchers and hospital admissions increased by 12.4% compared to 2019.

Using data between 2016 and 2020, they found a continuous increase, also most pronounced in 2020, when the pandemic arrived in the US. It was most severe for people aged 18 to 44, as hospital admission jumped 20% and in-hospital deaths increased by 24.6% in 2020 compared to the year before.

“Severe liver disease seems to be rising over time, but it appears to have increased even more dramatically during the pandemic,” says Kris Kowdley, professor at Washington State University’s Elson S. Floyd College of Medicine, senior author of the study and director of the Liver Institute Northwest, US.

“We confirmed that alcohol-related hepatitis hospital admissions increased continually from 2016 to 2020. We also found that younger patients and women had a higher increase in in-hospital mortality than their counterparts.”

Alcohol hepatitis
Although regions in the US are experiencing the issue more than others, the researchers say it’s a nationwide problem.

According to the study, published in the American Journal of Medical Sciences, one-third of regular heavy drinkers – drinking four or more drinks daily – typically get alcohol-related hepatitis with symptoms of loss of appetite, vomiting, abdominal pain and jaundice.

There are more cases of alcohol-related hepatitis in the south of the US, while the highest rise is in the west.Hepatitis from alcohol can also cause permanent liver damage – cirrhosis – and death.

Across 37 US states, 823,000 people were hospitalized with alcohol hepatitis between 2016 and 2020. The scientists argue that although this is a small group considering the US population, the rapid increase in cases and severity of the disease is concerning.

In the first year, 146,000 people were hospitalized and a 5.1% annual increase was observed until 2019. The following year it increased by 12.4% as over 190,000 people were hospitalized. 

Gender, geography and economics
Alcohol-related hepatitis is more common among men, but the increase was dominant among women, with 14.6% compared to 12.2%. Geography also played a role, where more overall cases are in the south of the US while the highest cases increase are in the west.

Those earning a higher income had the highest levels of increase in alcohol hepatitis cases between 2016 and 2019, which took a turn in the first year of the pandemic when the lowest income group showed the highest rise in cases.

“A variety of factors likely contributed to a much higher rate of alcohol consumption during the pandemic, such as being socially isolated and having fewer barriers to drinking excess alcohol,” Kowdley explains.

“It’s also possible that the relationship with lower income may be related to stress, anxiety and financial concerns associated with the pandemic.”

Kowdley further stresses the importance of removing the stigma on alcohol-related liver disease and that there is a need to help people suffering from alcohol use disorders with treatments covering mental health, nutritional counseling, behavioral therapy and medications to reduce cravings. 

“We need to recognize and treat alcohol-related hepatitis like any other disease and not stigmatize the patient suffering. As healthcare providers and patients, we must also be conscious that alcohol-related hepatitis can be a life-threatening disorder,” he says.

Edited by Beatrice Wihlander