correlation between AD and AUDIT scores is maximized at an AUDIT cutoff ≥ 20 (with controls defined as those scoring ≤ 4; rg = 0.90). Interestingly, that study also found that a score reflecting items related to problem drinking (AUDIT-P) resulted in a stronger genetic correlation (rg = 0.64) than a score related to alcohol consumption alone (rg = 0.33). The strong genetic correlation of AD with lower educational attainment and lower socio-economic status (i.e. higher Townsend deprivation), in contrast to positive genetic correlations of education with consumption17 and AUDIT scores related to consumption30, further underscore this distinction between normative/habitual levels of alcohol intake and diagnosed AD, at least in the respective populations studied.
