Taken together with previous factor analyses supporting a common latent factor underlying alcohol abuse and dependence, this study suggests that DSM-V should consider abuse and dependence symptoms conjointly with separate thresholds for abuse and dependence diagnoses. This study outlines one potential alternative algorithm. Although this represents a departure from the theoretical framework underlying these two diagnoses 42, such an approach would have the appeal of eliminating diagnostic orphans, and our results show that this approach is empirically supported by improved scaling of AUD severity within and across diagnostic categories.
