Progress for Patients
The Harris Poll: Insights into the Diagnosis and Treatment Journey for People Living With Alcohol Use Disorder
At Alkermes, we are committed to understanding the experience of people living with alcohol use disorder (AUD) and to understanding the treatment journey. New findings from a recent survey conducted by the Harris Poll provide important insights from individuals with AUD on their path to diagnosis and treatment of this chronic condition.
A majority of people surveyed (79%) responded that they had negative feelings when initially diagnosed, including feeling scared (38%), ashamed (33%), concerned (32%) and embarrassed (32%). Additionally, the path to diagnosis was often prompted by negative mental, physical and psychosocial impacts, ranging from involvement in an alcohol-related incident or visit to a hospital or emergency room.
Motivations for seeking treatment among those who have ever been treated for AUD varies, and included the negative impact of AUD on physical health (39%) or mental health (38%), advice from a healthcare provider (38%), advice or encouragement from family or friends (33%), or the negative impact of AUD on daily life (31%).
The majority of respondents (70%) were currently being treated for AUD, with over half of those respondents reporting treatment having a positive impact across many facets of their lives, including:
- Physical health (61%)
- Overall quality of life (60%)
- Relationships with their children (60%)
- Work/career or ability to work (59%)
- Relationship with friends (57%)
- Relationship with spouse/partner (57%)
View more perspectives on the diagnosis journey and treatment at the below infographic.
Survey Methodology:
The survey was conducted online in the United States by The Harris Poll on behalf of Alkermes, Inc. from August 15 – 27, 2024 among 300 adults between the ages of 21-64 who had been diagnosed with alcohol use disorder (AUD) or alcohol dependence. Raw data were not weighted and are therefore only representative of the individuals who completed the survey. Respondents for this survey were selected from among those who have agreed to participate in Harris Poll surveys. The sampling precision of Harris online polls is measured by using a Bayesian credible interval. For this study, the sample data is accurate to within ± 5.6 percentage points using a 95% confidence level. This credible interval will be wider among subsets of the surveyed population of interest.
All sample surveys and polls, whether or not they use probability sampling, are subject to other multiple sources of error which are most often not possible to quantify or estimate, including but not limited to coverage error, error associated with nonresponse, error associated with question wording and response options, and post-survey weighting and adjustments.
For complete survey methodology, including weighting variables and subgroup sample sizes, please contact mediainfo@alkermes.com.
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Last updated: September 2025