Abstract: Objective The aim of this study was to investigate the reasons of failed alcohol abstinence in patients with alcoholic liver diseases (ALD). Methods A total of 149 male patients with ALD or ALD with concomitant other liver diseases were admitted to our hospital between February 2021 and June 2022, and all were persuaded and encouraged for alcohol abstinence at first visit. The alcoholic behavior was evaluated by alcohol use disorders identification test (AUDIT), and the univariate and multivariate Logistic analysis was conducted for the factors of alcohol abstinence failure. Results The patients in our series included ALD in 88 cases, with concomitant chronic hepatitis B in 49 cases and with other liver diseases in 12 cases, characterized by mild liver disease in 27 cases, fatty liver in 36 cases, alcoholic hepatitis in 14 cases and liver cirrhosis (LC) or primary liver cancer (PLC) in 72 cases; at the end of three-month of follow-up, the alcohol abstinence failed in 53 cases (35.6%) and succeeded in 96 cases (64.4%); the ages, and the percentages of alcohol abuse longer than 30 yr, with concomitant other liver diseases and alcohol dependence in succeeded patients were (54.8±11.3)yr, 56.3%, 50.0% and 16.7%, significantly different compared to [(49.6±11.5)yr, 28.3%, 24.5% and 60.4%] in failed patients (P＜0.05); the percentages of mild liver diseases, fatty liver, alcoholic hepatitis and LC/PLC in succeeded patients were 17.7%, 15.6%, 6.3% and 60.4%, significantly different compared to 18.9%, 39.6%, 15.1% and 26.4% in failed patients (P＜0.05); the multivariate Logistic analysis showed that the alcohol dependence, simple ALD, mild liver diseases, fatty liver and alcoholic hepatitis were the main risk factors for short-term failed alcohol abstinence (P＜0.05). Conclusion More than one-third (35.6%) of patients with ALD or ALD with other liver diseases fail to abstain from drinking, and the alcohol dependence ALD alone and mild illness are the independent risk factors for abstinence failure.

Key words: Alcoholic liver diseases, Alcohol dependence, Severity of illness, Alcohol abstinence, Influencing factor