Alcohol use disorder (AUD) is a chronic disease with devastating effects on individuals, families, and society (Sacks et al., 2015, Navarro et al., 2011, Nayak et al., 2019, Greenfield et al., 2015, Karriker-Jaffe et al., 2018). In the U.S., the 12-month and lifetime prevalence of DSM-5 AUD (American Psychiatric Association, 2022) are 10.6% and 29.1%, respectively (Grant et al., 2015). Although remission is common, only 11% of individuals with past-year alcohol dependence remitted within three years (Dawson et al., 2012) and approximately half of individuals with lifetime AUD remitted within 20 years of the condition’s onset (Fleury et al., 2016). The probability of remission and the type of remission (i.e., abstinent and non-abstinent) are both linked to AUD severity. Individuals who do not remit usually have greater severity in terms of alcohol consumption and symptoms, and among individuals who do remit, those who abstain from alcohol have greater severity than those who reduce alcohol consumption without abstaining (Dawson et al., 2005, Fan et al., 2019a, Lee et al., 2018). Identifying factors that influence the likelihood of remission can contribute to timely and effective treatments tailored to AUD severity and abstinence goals.
