The effects of marital status, partner drinking, and sex differences on the likelihood of remission from alcohol use disorder

Christina Garasky; Alexis Duncan; Fanghong Dong; Gayathri Pandey; Jiawen Zhao; Jared Balbona; Grace Chan; Weipeng Kuang; Chella Kamarajan; Martin Plawecki; Victor Hesselbrock; Samuel Kuperman; Bernice Porjesz; Andrey Anokhin; Emma Johnson; Arpana Agrawal; Jessica Salvatore; Sally Kuo; Kathleen Bucholz; Vivia McCutcheon

doi:10.1093/alcalc/agaf085

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The effects of marital status, partner drinking, and sex differences on the likelihood of remission from alcohol use disorder

Journal article

Peer reviewed

The effects of marital status, partner drinking, and sex differences on the likelihood of remission from alcohol use disorder

Christina Garasky, Alexis Duncan, Fanghong Dong, Gayathri Pandey, Jiawen Zhao, Jared Balbona, Grace Chan, Weipeng Kuang, Chella Kamarajan, Martin Plawecki, …

Alcohol and alcoholism (Oxford), Vol.61(1), agaf085

01/2026

DOI: 10.1093/alcalc/agaf085

PMCID: PMC12779479

PMID: 41501993

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https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC12779479/View

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Abstract

Marriage is associated with improved health and alcohol outcomes, yet prior research has often combined diverse non-marital relationships, obscuring whether benefits are unique to marriage or a result of strong interpersonal relationships. This study examines whether marriage, compared to cohabitation, exclusive dating, or being single, is associated with alcohol use disorder (AUD) remission and whether this varies by sex and partner drinking. Participants were adults from the Collaborative Study on the Genetics of Alcoholism Lifespan Study (n = 1494; 54.4% female) who met criteria for lifetime DSM-5 AUD. Multivariate logistic regression models examined the association between marital status and remission. Subsequent models tested interactions among marital status, partner drinking, and sex. Predicted remission prevalence was estimated using marginal standardization and compared across groups on an additive scale using prevalence differences (PD). Married individuals had greater predicted prevalence of remission, particularly compared to those who were exclusively dating (PD = 9.2, P = .020). Married females whose partners were average alcohol consumers (PD = 12.20, q = .049) or abstinent (PD = 17.98, q = .017), and married males whose partners had above average alcohol consumption (PD = 25.30, q = .049) had greater predicted prevalence of remission compared to their counterparts who were in non-marital committed relationships. The findings suggest differences in marital status and relationship factors may indicate increased risk and challenges in sustaining remission and highlight potential caveats of marital status as a protective factor. This emphasizes the need to consider these factors in designing treatment strategies.

Adult

Alcohol Drinking - epidemiology

Alcohol Drinking - psychology

Alcoholism - epidemiology

Alcoholism - psychology

Female

Humans

Male

Marital Status

Middle Aged

Remission Induction

Sex Characteristics

Sex Factors

Sexual Partners - psychology

Details

Title: Subtitle: The effects of marital status, partner drinking, and sex differences on the likelihood of remission from alcohol use disorder
Creators: Christina Garasky - Washington University in St. Louis
Alexis Duncan - Washington University in St. Louis
Fanghong Dong - Washington University in St. Louis
Gayathri Pandey - SUNY Downstate Health Sciences University
Jiawen Zhao - Rutgers New Jersey Medical School
Jared Balbona - Washington University in St. Louis
Grace Chan - UConn Health
Weipeng Kuang - SUNY Downstate Health Sciences University
Chella Kamarajan - SUNY Downstate Health Sciences University
Martin Plawecki - Indiana University – Purdue University Indianapolis
Victor Hesselbrock - University of Connecticut
Samuel Kuperman - University of Iowa
Bernice Porjesz - SUNY Downstate Health Sciences University
Andrey Anokhin - Washington University in St. Louis
Emma Johnson - Washington University in St. Louis
Arpana Agrawal - Washington University in St. Louis
Jessica Salvatore - Rutgers New Jersey Medical School
Sally Kuo - Rutgers New Jersey Medical School
Kathleen Bucholz - Washington University in St. Louis
Vivia McCutcheon - Washington University in St. Louis School of Medicine
Resource Type: Journal article
Publication Details: Alcohol and alcoholism (Oxford), Vol.61(1), agaf085
DOI: 10.1093/alcalc/agaf085
PMID: 41501993
PMCID: PMC12779479
NLM abbreviation: Alcohol Alcohol
ISSN: 1464-3502
eISSN: 1464-3502
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Grant note: T32 DA015025 / NIH HHS U10 AA00840 / NIH HHS R01 AA030563 / NIH HHS
Language: English
Electronic publication date: 11/16/2025
Date published: 01/2026
Academic Unit: Psychiatry
Record Identifier: 9985116069002771

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