Longitudinal Validity of the Cage Questionnaire

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Abstract
The CAGE questions were administered as part of the Health and Lifestyle survey to 4000 individuals on two occasions with a gap of seven years between surveys. Because the CAGE questions ask, “Have you ever … ? a positive response on the first occasion should result in a positive response to the same question on any subsequent occasion. Although overall the proportion giving positive responses to the CAGE questions was similar in both surveys, the consistency between surveys of positive answers to individual questions was poor, ranging between 44% and 82% of individuals answering “No” to a question which they had previously answered positively. Men were a little more likely than women to give consistent answers. It is suggested that the CAGE questions are often not answered correctly which raises doubt about their value in longitudinal population surveys and as an individual screening tool.