CAGE
Medical abbreviation · Mental Health & Psychiatry
| Stands for | Cut down, Annoyed, Guilty, Eye-opener (questionnaire) |
|---|---|
| Categories | Medical |
CAGE stands for Cut down, Annoyed, Guilty, Eye-opener (questionnaire), a mental health & psychiatry abbreviation.
Four-question alcohol screening tool asking whether a person has felt they should Cut down, been Annoyed by criticism of their drinking, felt Guilty about drinking, or needed an Eye-opener drink in the morning. Two or more yes answers suggest a clinically significant alcohol problem.
Example: CAGE 3/4, positive eye-opener; full AUD assessment and withdrawal risk evaluation.
Usage notes
Psychiatrist John Ewing developed it in the late 1960s and published it widely in JAMA in 1984. It detects alcohol dependence better than risky drinking and focuses on lifetime rather than recent use, so many clinicians now prefer AUDIT-C. A version adapted for drugs is called CAGE-AID.
Related abbreviations
More mental health & psychiatry abbreviations
- BH – Behavioral health
- BN – Bulimia nervosa
- BPAD – Bipolar affective disorder
- BPD – Borderline personality disorder
- C-PTSD – Complex post-traumatic stress disorder
- C-SSRS – Columbia Suicide Severity Rating Scale
- CBT – Cognitive behavioral therapy
- CD – Conduct disorder
- CPT – Cognitive processing therapy
- CUD – Cannabis use disorder
- DBT – Dialectical behavior therapy
- DID – Dissociative identity disorder
See all 100 mental health & psychiatry abbreviations →
This entry is for general education and is not medical advice. Abbreviation use varies between institutions; always confirm in context.