Alcohol Use Disorder: Natural History, Definitions, and Stigma.

Liver clinicians commonly encounter patients exhibiting hazardous patterns of alcohol use, including alcohol use disorder (AUD). Alcohol-associated liver disease (ALD) consists of severe psychosocial and biomedical hazards that necessitate clinicians' broad understanding of the natural history of this multifaceted chronic and relapsing condition. AUD involves myriad behavioral phenomena and data whose interpretation can be more subjective than biomedical data, thus requiring particular clarity in clinical terminology. ALD triggers strong emotional and moralistic reactions in clinicians, which can be the basis for stigma and other unproductive interactions that adversely affect clinical care and research.