In conclusion, denial of a general alcohol problem by individuals who admitted to multiple AUD criteria items was quite common in the SDPS, despite prodigious maximum drinking quantities. This pattern of denial indicates that greater efforts need to be made to educate our patients and our colleagues regarding what an AUD is and how serious the prognosis can be. For AUD probands, deniers were less likely to endorse several specific criteria that might offer some insights into why they do not consider themselves problem drinkers. Whether these problems were truly absent or if the person was reluctant to admit their presence, motivational interviewing, brief interventions and related approaches might help patients recognize that the absence of endorsement of those four items does not mean that the alcohol problems are not serious.
