Locus of control as a predictor of students dropping out of high school

Education is related to health. In cross-sectional data, education level has been associated with physical functioning. Also, lower levels of education have been associated with health behaviors including smoking, alcohol use, and greater body weight. In school, students may benefit from greater exposed to health-related messages, while students who have dropped out may be more susceptible to influences regarding negative health behaviors such as smoking. ^ Improved school retention might improve long-term health outcomes. However, there is limited evidence regarding modifiable factors that predict likelihood of dropping out. Two likely psychosocial measures are locus of control and parent-child academic conversations. In the current study, data from two waves of a population-based longitudinal survey, the National Education Longitudinal Survey, were utilized to evaluate whether these two psychosocial measures could predict likelihood of dropping out, for students (n = 16,749) in tenth grade at 1990, with dropout status determined at 1992, while controlling for recognized sociodemographic predictors including parental income, parental education level, race/ethnicity, and sex. Locus of control was measured with the Pearlin Mastery Scale, and parent-child academic conversations were measured by three questions concerning course selection at school, school activities and events, and things the student studied in class. ^ In a logistic regression model, with the sociodemographic control measures entered in a first step before entry of the psychosocial measures in a second step, this study determined that lower levels of locus of control were associated with greater likelihood of dropping out after two years (odds ratio (OR) = 1.11, 95% confidence interval (CI) 108 to 1.15, p < .001), and two of the three parent-child academic discussion items were associated with greater likelihood of dropping out after two years (OR = 1.69, CI 1.48-1.93, p < .001; OR = 1.22, CI 1.05-1.41, p = .01; OR = 1.01, CI .88-1.15, p = .94). ^ It is possible that interventions aimed at improving locus of control, and aimed at building parent-child academic conversations, could lower the likelihood of students dropping out, and this in turn could yield improved heath behaviors and health status in the child's future. ^

A constellation of factors associated with premature births among African American women

A cohort, cross-sectional, historical study design was used to study factors related to spontaneous premature birth outcomes among African American women. The cohort consisted of 4,294 mothers drawn from the 1988 National Maternal and Infant Health Survey conducted by the National Center for Health Statistics. The objectives of the study were: (1) to examine the distribution of gestational ages of African American infants for selected variables reported for their families and (2) to describe risk factors associated with birth at 20–31 weeks of gestational age and at 32–36 weeks of gestational age. Risk factors examined include maternal age, maternal marital status, maternal living arrangements, maternal education, maternal work status, household income, gestational bleeding, month prenatal began, adequacy of prenatal care, parity, previous viable preterm birth, and behavioral factors of attitude toward pregnancy, smoking, drug, and alcohol use during pregnancy. Frequency distributions, cross tabulations, stratified analysis, and logistic regression analysis were used. ^ Risk factors associated with a 50 percent or more increase in preterm birth were cocaine use, low maternal education, teenaged mother, prenatal care deficits or overuse, and bleeding during the second half of pregnancy. The other risk factors of not living with the baby's father, smoking cigarettes and having a mistimed pregnancy carried statistically significance but lower strength of association. ^ Health care services, educational systems, and community organizations can develop and evaluate comprehensive health education and information campaigns that address preventable risk factors during pregnancy. Although preterm birth cannot always be prevented, preconception care can help identify and modify maternal risk and promote optimum health before conception. Quality care should include continued risk assessment, health promotion, and interventions. ^

Correlation between dental care utilization and oral cavity cancer in a large sample of community-based United States residents

Cancer of the oral cavity and pharynx remains one of the ten leading causes of cancer death in the United States (US). Besides smoking and alcohol consumption, there are no well established risk factors. While poor dental care had been implicated, it is unknown if the lack of dental care, implying poor dental hygiene predisposes to oral cavity cancer. This study aimed to assess the relationship between dental care utilization during the past twelve months and the prevalence of oral cavity cancer. A cross-sectional design of the National Health Interview Survey of adult, non-institutionalized US residents (n=30,475) was used to assess the association between dental care utilization and self reported diagnosis of oral cavity cancer. Chi square statistic was used to examine the crude association between the predictor variable, dental care utilization and other covariates, while unconditional logistic regression was used to assess the relationship between oral cavity cancer and dental care utilization. There were statistically significant differences between those who utilized dental care during the past twelve months and those who did not with respect to education, income, age, marital status, and gender (p < 0.05), but not health insurance coverage (p = 0.53). Also, those who utilized dental care relative to those who did not were 65% less likely to present with oral cavity cancer, prevalence odds ratio (POR), 0.35, 95% Confidence Interval (CI), 0.12–0.98. Further, higher income advanced age, people of African heritage, and unmarried status were statistically significantly associated with oral cavity cancer, (p < 0.05), but health insurance coverage, alcohol use and smoking were not, p > 0.05. However, after simultaneously controlling for the relevant covariates, the association between dental care and oral cavity cancer did not attenuate nor persist. Thus, compared with those who did not use dental care, those who did wee 62% less likely to present with oral cavity cancer adjusted POR, 0.38, 95% CI, 0.13-1.10. Among US adults residing in community settings, use of dental care during the past twelve months did not significantly reduce the predisposition to oral cavity cancer. However, due to the nature of the data used in this study, which restricts temporal sequence, a large sample prospective study that may identify modifiable factors associated with oral cancer development namely poor dental care, is needed. ^

Behavioral cognitions and factors related to hepatitis B vaccine acceptance and compliance in a cohort of drug users in Houston, Texas

Purpose. Drug users are a large group of those at highest risk for contracting Hepatitis B (HBV). This study sought to identify predictors of HBV vaccine acceptance and compliance in a cohort of current drug users in Houston, Texas. Perceived severity of HBV, perceived risk of HBV, perceived peer support of HBV vaccine, and perceived benefits of HBV vaccine were also examined assess their relationship to HBV compliance. ^ Methods. A randomized intervention study was conducted in a cohort of current drug users in Houston, Texas. Participants were recruited by community outreach workers from two urban neighborhoods in Houston known for high drug use. Participants were randomized to a standard vaccine schedule group or an accelerated vaccine schedule group. Participants were also randomized to either a standard behavioral intervention group or an enhanced behavioral intervention group designed to increase HBV vaccine acceptance and compliance. Baseline visits included an interview for demographic factors, drug and sexual behaviors, and HBV beliefs; and participants received the first dose of the HBV vaccine and one of the behavioral interventions. ^ Results. Of 1,643 screening participants, 77% accepted the HBV vaccine. Participants ages ≥50 were twice as likely to accept the vaccine. African Americans and less frequent drug users were also significantly more likely to accept the vaccine. Of the 1,259 participants who enrolled in the study, 75% were compliant to the HBV vaccine. Predictors of compliance were found to be race, housing status, and alcohol use. Speedball users were found to be 74% less likely to be compliant the HBV vaccine. None of the behavioral constructs assessed were found to significantly predict HBV compliance. However, additional analyses found that there were significant changes in mean scores of the behavioral concepts when measured at six month follow-up. ^ Conclusion. Results from this study indicate that when offered a free vaccine in the drug user community, a large percentage will be compliant to the vaccine series. The behavioral cognitions commonly used in HBV compliance research need to be extended to accurately fit this cohort. Also, vaccine intervention focus needs to be on reaching the homeless segment of the drug users and the speedball users. ^

Gender associated risk factors of aortic aneurysms and dissections

Objectives. Predict who will develop a dissection. To create male and female prediction models using the risk factors: age, ethnicity, hypertension, high cholesterol, smoking, alcohol use, diabetes, heart attack, congestive heart failure, congenital and non-congenital heart disease, Marfan syndrome, and bicuspid aortic valve. ^ Methods. Using 572 patients diagnosed with aortic aneurysms, a model was developed for each of males and females using 80% of the data and then verified using the remaining 20% of the data. ^ Results. The male model predicted the probability of a male in having a dissection (p=0.076) and the female model predicted the probability of a female in having a dissection (p=0.054). The validation models did not support the choice of the developmental models. ^ Conclusions. The best models obtained suggested that those who are at a greater risk of having a dissection are males with non-congenital heart disease and who drink alcohol, and females with non-congenital heart disease and bicuspid aortic valve.^

The application of latent variable models to the assessment of determinants of HIV risk behavior

Studies on the relationship between psychosocial determinants and HIV risk behaviors have produced little evidence to support hypotheses based on theoretical relationships. One limitation inherent in many articles in the literature is the method of measurement of the determinants and the analytic approach selected. ^ To reduce the misclassification associated with unit scaling of measures specific to internalized homonegativity, I evaluated the psychometric properties of the Reactions to Homosexuality scale in a confirmatory factor analytic framework. In addition, I assessed the measurement invariance of the scale across racial/ethnic classifications in a sample of men who have sex with men. The resulting measure contained eight items loading on three first-order factors. Invariance assessment identified metric and partial strong invariance between racial/ethnic groups in the sample. ^ Application of the updated measure to a structural model allowed for the exploration of direct and indirect effects of internalized homonegativity on unprotected anal intercourse. Pathways identified in the model show that drug and alcohol use at last sexual encounter, the number of sexual partners in the previous three months and sexual compulsivity all contribute directly to risk behavior. Internalized homonegativity reduced the likelihood of exposure to drugs, alcohol or higher numbers of partners. For men who developed compulsive sexual behavior as a coping strategy for internalized homonegativity, there was an increase in the prevalence odds of risk behavior. ^ In the final stage of the analysis, I conducted a latent profile analysis of the items in the updated Reactions to Homosexuality scale. This analysis identified five distinct profiles, which suggested that the construct was not homogeneous in samples of men who have sex with men. Lack of prior consideration of these distinct manifestations of internalized homonegativity may have contributed to the analytic difficulty in identifying a relationship between the trait and high-risk sexual practices. ^

Clinical and epidemiological characteristics of breast cancer metastases

Introduction. Breast cancer is a highly variable disease, and long-term outcomes for individual patients are difficult to predict. We evaluated a retrospective cohort of early stage breast cancer (ESBC) patients based on a variety of clinical and epidemiological factors, specifically looking at the distribution of metastasis and associations with these clinical and epidemiological factors. ^ Methods. Patients were derived from the Early Stage Breast Cancer Repository (ESBCR) with a breast cancer diagnosed between 1985 and 2000. We conducted univariate and multivariate analysis of the data to evaluate associations between characteristics and occurrence of overall, visceral, and bone metastasis. Visceral metastasis was defined as lung, liver, peritoneal, lymph node (thoracic, abdominal, pelvis), and contralateral breast cancer. ^ Results. Overall, 394 (16%) patients developed a metastasis. Of these, 83% were visceral and 17% were bone. Multivariate analyses identified the following variables to be associated with metastasis: Any metastasis: age at diagnosis, stage, ER/PR status, hormone treatment, and type of surgery (1)Visceral metastasis: age at diagnosis, stage, hormone treatment, and type of surgery (2) Bone metastasis –Alcohol use, stage, and ER/PR status ^ Discussion/conclusion. ER-/PR- status has previously been found to be associated with bone metastasis, as we confirm in our cohort. We report an association between alcohol use and bone metastasis whereas previous studies find an association with recurrence. Distribution of metastases varies from previous studies. Typically, previous studies reported bone metastasis >30%, yet our study found 17%. Previous studies varied in design, and definition of visceral metastasis. Future research is needed to further elucidate prognostic factors associated with specific metastases A more thorough understanding of what might predict which ESBC patients will develop metastases can help direct future treatment. Future studies of this nature could include the Perou intrinsic subtypes, biomarkers like Ki-67, and genetic analyses such as Oncotype DX or MammaPrint.^

Air Force Web Preventive Health Assessment (AF WEBPHA) mental health screening effectiveness

The U.S. Air Force assesses Active Duty Air Force (ADAF) health annually using the Air Force Web-based Preventative Health Assessment (AF WebPHA). The assessment is based on a self-administered survey used to determine the overall Air Force health and readiness, as well as, the individual health of each airman. Individual survey responses as well as groups of responses generate further computer generated assessment and result in a classification of 'Critical', 'Priority', or 'Routine', depending on the need and urgency for further evaluation by a health care provider. The importance of the 'Priority' and 'Critical' classifications is to provide timely intervention to prevent or limit unfavorable outcomes that may threaten an airman. Though the USAF has been transitioning from a paper form to the online WebPHA survey for the last three years it was not made mandatory for all airmen until 2009. The survey covers many health aspects including family history, tobacco use, exercise, alcohol use, and mental health. ^ Military stressors such as deployment, change of station, and the trauma of war can aggravate and intensify the common baseline worries experienced by the general population and place airmen at additional risks for mental health concerns and illness. This study assesses the effectiveness of the AF WebPHA mental health screening questions in predicting a mental health disorder diagnosis according to International Classification of Diseases, 9th Revision, Clinical Modification (ICD-9-CM) codes generated by physicians or their surrogates. In order to assess the sensitivity, specificity, and positive predictive value of the AF WebPHA as a screening tool for mental health, survey results were compared to ascertain if they generated any mental health disorder related diagnosis for the period from January 1, 2009 to March 31, 2010. ^ Statistical analysis of the AF WebPHA mental health responses when compared with matching ICD-9-CM codes found that the sensitivity for 'Critical' or 'Priority' responses was only 3.4% and that it would correctly predict those who had the selected mental health diagnosis 9% of the time.^

Prevalence of symptoms of neurotoxicity and potential occupational pesticide and solvent exposures among high school students in Starr County, Texas: A pilot study

Numerous harmful occupational exposures affect working teens in the United States. Teens working in agriculture and other heavy-labor industries may be at risk for occupational exposures to pesticides and solvents. The neurotoxicity of pesticides and solvents at high doses is well-known; however, the long term effects of these substances at low doses on occupationally exposed adolescents have not been well-studied. To address this research gap, a secondary analysis of cross-sectional data was completed in order to estimate the prevalence of self-reported symptoms of neurotoxicity among a cohort of high school students from Starr County, Texas, a rural area along the Texas-Mexico border. Multivariable linear regression was used to estimate the association between work status (i.e., no work, farm work, and non-farm work) and symptoms of neurotoxicity, while controlling for age, gender, Spanish speaking preference, inhalant use, tobacco use, and alcohol use. The sample included 1,208 students. Of these, the majority (85.84%) did not report having worked during the prior nine months compared to 4.80% who did only farm work, 6.21% who did only non-farm work, and 3.15% who did both types of work. On average, students reported 3.26 symptoms with a range from 0-16. The most commonly endorsed items across work status were those related to memory impairment. Adolescents employed in non-farm work jobs reported more neurotoxicity symptoms than those who reported that they did not work (Mean 4.31; SD 3.97). In the adjusted multivariable regression model, adolescents reporting non-farm work status reported an average of 0.77 more neurotoxicity symptoms on the Q16 than those who did not work (P = 0.031). The confounding variables included in the final model were all found to be factors significantly associated with report of neurotoxicity symptoms. Future research should examine the relationship between these variables and self-report of symptoms of neurotoxicity.^

Detecting genetic and nutritional lung cancer risk factors related to folate metabolism using Bayesian generalized linear models

Complex diseases, such as cancer, are caused by various genetic and environmental factors, and their interactions. Joint analysis of these factors and their interactions would increase the power to detect risk factors but is statistically. Bayesian generalized linear models using student-t prior distributions on coefficients, is a novel method to simultaneously analyze genetic factors, environmental factors, and interactions. I performed simulation studies using three different disease models and demonstrated that the variable selection performance of Bayesian generalized linear models is comparable to that of Bayesian stochastic search variable selection, an improved method for variable selection when compared to standard methods. I further evaluated the variable selection performance of Bayesian generalized linear models using different numbers of candidate covariates and different sample sizes, and provided a guideline for required sample size to achieve a high power of variable selection using Bayesian generalize linear models, considering different scales of number of candidate covariates. ^ Polymorphisms in folate metabolism genes and nutritional factors have been previously associated with lung cancer risk. In this study, I simultaneously analyzed 115 tag SNPs in folate metabolism genes, 14 nutritional factors, and all possible genetic-nutritional interactions from 1239 lung cancer cases and 1692 controls using Bayesian generalized linear models stratified by never, former, and current smoking status. SNPs in MTRR were significantly associated with lung cancer risk across never, former, and current smokers. In never smokers, three SNPs in TYMS and three gene-nutrient interactions, including an interaction between SHMT1 and vitamin B12, an interaction between MTRR and total fat intake, and an interaction between MTR and alcohol use, were also identified as associated with lung cancer risk. These lung cancer risk factors are worthy of further investigation.^

Performance of HbA1c for classifying diabetes and diagnostic threshold for diabetes among the Mexican American border community

Objective. In 2009, the International Expert Committee recommended the use of HbA1c test for diagnosis of diabetes. Although it has been recommended for the diagnosis of diabetes, its precise test performance among Mexican Americans is uncertain. A strong “gold standard” would rely on repeated blood glucose measurement on different days, which is the recommended method for diagnosing diabetes in clinical practice. Our objective was to assess test performance of HbA1c in detecting diabetes and pre-diabetes against repeated fasting blood glucose measurement for the Mexican American population living in United States-Mexico border. Moreover, we wanted to find out a specific and precise threshold value of HbA1c for Diabetes Mellitus (DM) and pre-diabetes for this high-risk population which might assist in better diagnosis and better management of patient diabetes. ^ Research design and methods. We used CCHC dataset for our study. In 2004, the Cameron County Hispanic Cohort (CCHC), now numbering 2,574, was established drawn from randomly selected households on the basis of 2000 Census tract data. The CCHC study randomly selected a subset of people (aged 18-64 years) in CCHC cohort households to determine the influence of SES on diabetes and obesity. Among the participants in Cohort-2000, 67.15% are female; all are Hispanic. ^ Individuals were defined as having diabetes mellitus (Fasting plasma glucose [FPG] ≥ 126 mg/dL or pre-diabetes (100 ≤ FPG < 126 mg/dL). HbA1c test performance was evaluated using receiver operator characteristic (ROC) curves. Moreover, change-point models were used to determine HbA1c thresholds compatible with FPG thresholds for diabetes and pre-diabetes. ^ Results. When assessing Fasting Plasma Glucose (FPG) is used to detect diabetes, the sensitivity and specificity of HbA1c≥ 6.5% was 75% and 87% respectively (area under the curve 0.895). Additionally, when assessing FPG to detect pre-diabetes, the sensitivity and specificity of HbA1c≥ 6.0% (ADA recommended threshold) was 18% and 90% respectively. The sensitivity and specificity of HbA1c≥ 5.7% (International Expert Committee recommended threshold) for detecting pre-diabetes was 31% and 78% respectively. ROC analyses suggest HbA1c as a sound predictor of diabetes mellitus (area under the curve 0.895) but a poorer predictor for pre-diabetes (area under the curve 0.632). ^ Conclusions. Our data support the current recommendations for use of HbA1c in the diagnosis of diabetes for the Mexican American population as it has shown reasonable sensitivity, specificity and accuracy against repeated FPG measures. However, use of HbA1c may be premature for detecting pre-diabetes in this specific population because of the poor sensitivity with FPG. It might be the case that HbA1c is differentiating the cases more effectively who are at risk of developing diabetes. Following these pre-diabetic individuals for a longer-term for the detection of incident diabetes may lead to more confirmatory result.^

Social integration, health behaviors and health status among Mexican-American women in the *southwestern United States

Using the Hispanic Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (HHANES), this research examined several health behaviors and the health status of Mexican American women. This study focused on determining the relative impact of social contextual factors: age, socioeconomic status, quality of life indicators, and urban/rural residence on (a) health behaviors (smoking, obesity and alcohol use) and (b) health status (physician's assessment of health status, subject's assessment of health status and blood pressure levels). In addition, social integration was analyzed. The social integration indicators relate to an individual's degree of integration within his/her social group: marital status, level of acculturation (a continuum of traditional Mexican ways to dominant U.S. cultural ways), status congruency, and employment status. Lastly, the social contextual factors and social integration indicators were examined to identify those factors that contribute most to understanding health behaviors and health status among Mexican American women.^ The study found that the social contextual factors and social integration indicators proved to be important concepts in understanding the health behaviors. Social integration, however, did not predict health status except in the case of the subject's assessment of health status. Age and obesity were the strongest predictors of blood pressure. The social contextual factors and obesity were significant predictors of the physician's assessment of health status while acculturation, education, alcohol use and obesity were significant predictors of the subject's assessment of health status. ^

The CoastColour Round Robin datasets: a database to evaluate the performance of algorithms for the retrieval of water quality parameters in coastal waters

The CoastColour project Round Robin (CCRR) project (http://www.coastcolour.org) funded by the European Space Agency (ESA) was designed to bring together a variety of reference datasets and to use these to test algorithms and assess their accuracy for retrieving water quality parameters. This information was then developed to help end-users of remote sensing products to select the most accurate algorithms for their coastal region. To facilitate this, an inter-comparison of the performance of algorithms for the retrieval of in-water properties over coastal waters was carried out. The comparison used three types of datasets on which ocean colour algorithms were tested. The description and comparison of the three datasets are the focus of this paper, and include the Medium Resolution Imaging Spectrometer (MERIS) Level 2 match-ups, in situ reflectance measurements and data generated by a radiative transfer model (HydroLight). The datasets mainly consisted of 6,484 marine reflectance associated with various geometrical (sensor viewing and solar angles) and sky conditions and water constituents: Total Suspended Matter (TSM) and Chlorophyll-a (CHL) concentrations, and the absorption of Coloured Dissolved Organic Matter (CDOM). Inherent optical properties were also provided in the simulated datasets (5,000 simulations) and from 3,054 match-up locations. The distributions of reflectance at selected MERIS bands and band ratios, CHL and TSM as a function of reflectance, from the three datasets are compared. Match-up and in situ sites where deviations occur are identified. The distribution of the three reflectance datasets are also compared to the simulated and in situ reflectances used previously by the International Ocean Colour Coordinating Group (IOCCG, 2006) for algorithm testing, showing a clear extension of the CCRR data which covers more turbid waters.

Análisis Post-Hoc de un experimento acerca de TDD

Objetivo: Este Trabajo Fin de Máster (TFM) analiza la importancia de la información poblacional en el análisis de datos de experimentos en IS. Por otro lado se intenta abordar un estudio sobre las posibles metodologías que se pueden usar para realizar dicho análisis. Contexto: El análisis se realiza sobre los resultados de un experimento llevado a cabo por el Grupo de Investigación de IS empírica de la UPM, cuyo objetivo es analizar el impacto que tiene el uso de TDD (Test Driven Development) sobre la calidad y la productividad del desarrollo software en comparación con el desarrollo tradicional TLD. Método de Investigación: Se analizan ocho variables demográficas frente a tres variables respuesta. Las metodologías o técnicas de análisis que se revisan son la Dicotomización, la Correlación de Pearson, la regresión lineal múltiple y la stepwise regression. Resultados: No se encuentran evidencias claras para afirmar que las variables demográficas influyen en los resultados de los experimentos. No obstante los resultados no son del todo concluyentes y queda abierta la investigación a realizarse con una muestra más amplia y representativa. En relación a la metodología de análisis aplicada, la dicotomización y la correlación de Pearson presentan deficiencias que se solventan con la regresión lineal múltiple y la stepwise regression. Conclusión: Resulta de vital importancia encontrar evidencias de la influencia de las características demográficas de los sujetos experimentales en el análisis de los datos experimentos en IS. Se ha encontrado un buen método para analizar esta influencia, pero falta replicar este análisis a más experimentos de IS para obtener resultados mejor fundados.---ABSTRACT---Objective: This Master's Thesis (TFM) discusses the importance of demographic data in the analysis of data from experiments in SE. On the other hand, it attempts to address a study of the possible methodologies that can be used to perform the analysis. Context: The analysis is performed on the results of an experiment conducted by the ESE Research Group of the UPM, aimed at analyzing the impact of the use of TDD (Test Driven Development) on quality and productivity, compared to traditional development TLD (Test Last Development). Research Method: Eight demographic variables were analyzed against three response variables. The methodologies and analysis techniques that are reviewed include dichotomization, Pearson correlation, multiple linear regression and stepwise regression. Results: There is not clear evidence to say that demographic variables influence the results of SE experiments. However the results are not conclusive, and are open to research with a broader and more representative sample. Regarding the applied analysis methodology, dichotomization and Pearson correlation have deficiencies that are solved with multiple linear regression and stepwise regression. Conclusion: It is very important to find evidence on the influence of demographic characteristics of subjects in the data analysis of SE experiments. We found a good way to analyze this influence, but is necessary replicate this analysis on more SE experiments to obtain sound results.

O agente comunitário e o usuário de álcool: discursos sobre a concepção e a assistência na Atenção Básica

Estima-se que 52% da população mundial faz uso de álcool, sendo a droga mais consumida no mundo. Ao usuário, o álcool torna-se prejudicial devido às consequências nos níveis biológicos, sociais e funcionais. Assim, a redução do uso abusivo da substância é um dos objetivos da Organização Mundial de Saúde (OMS) e uma das prioridades na agenda de saúde pública mundial. No Brasil, a Política do Ministério da Saúde para a Atenção Integral aos Usuários de Álcool e Outras Drogas teve como objetivo a criação de uma rede de atenção integral a eles - a RAPS (Rede de Atenção Psicossocial). A RAPS é considerada um grande avanço da Reforma Psiquiátrica, já que integra os diversos pontos de atenção disponíveis no Sistema Único de Saúde (SUS). Um dos pontos da RAPS é a Atenção Básica (AB), que através da atuação das equipes da Estratégia Saúde da Família (ESF) tem a possibilidade de monitoração, prevenção do uso e colaboração na reinserção social dos usuários de álcool e outras drogas devido à proximidade e criação de vínculo entre o serviço e usuário. Para que o vínculo seja estabelecido o Agente Comunitário de Saúde (ACS) é a peça fundamental, visto que conhece a comunidade e reconhece suas necessidades, além de ser a figura que medeia as relações entre a equipe de saúde e os usuários. Assim sendo, o objetivo deste estudo foi descrever e analisar o discurso de ACS sobre o uso de álcool e a assistência prestada na AB. Trata-se de um estudo qualitativo de teor descritivo, cuja pesquisa ocorreu em cinco municípios da região central do Estado de Santa Catarina. Foram realizadas entrevistas semiestruturadas, analisadas através do método da Análise de Conteúdo. A análise das entrevistas resultou na formulação de duas categorias e quatro subcategorias empíricas. Os resultados evidenciaram que os ACS percebem o consumo de álcool como inerente a população em virtude da cultura caracterizada pelo consumo habitual e festivo da droga. Eles percebem que o uso do álcool torna-se um problema quanto à definição social atribuída pela comunidade, ressaltando as consequências para a família e outras perdas vivenciadas pelos usuários com base nas repercussões sociais. Quanto à assistência prestada por eles aos usuários de álcool, os resultados indicaram uma prática desprovida de instrumentos ou habilidades para a abordagem adequada do uso, evidenciando uma prática infundada pelos ACS. A prática está pautada também nas crenças em relação aos usuários de álcool, que estão muito ligadas aos estigmas relacionados a estes usuários em geral e não em evidências científicas. Conclui-se que a partir do conhecimento das percepções e práticas deste profissional, é possível direcionar ações que potencialize a prática dos ACS, já que são profissionais com grandes possibilidades de atuação diante da prevenção e tratamento do abuso de álcool e reabilitação social do usuário