Comparative Effectiveness and Costs of Inpatient and Outpatient Detoxification of Patients with Mild-to-Moderate Alcohol Withdrawal Syndrome

Abstract

We compared the effectiveness, safety, and costs of outpatient (n = 87) and inpatient (n = 77) detoxification from alcohol in a randomized, prospective trial involving 164 male veterans of low socioeconomic status. The outpatients were evaluated medically and psychiatrically and then were prescribed decreasing doses of oxazepam on the basis of daily clinic visits. The inpatient program combined comprehensive psychiatric and medical evaluation, detoxification with oxazepam, and the initiation of rehabilitation treatment.