• Reported sensitivity of GGT for heavy drinking varies widely across a range of 34 - 85% of heavy drinkers.
• The response of GGT to alcohol use varies with age and sex.
• GGT is less sensitive as a screen for alcohol risk or harm in younger patients.
• It is also less sensitive in women even though women sustain damage at lower levels of alcohol.
• The sensitivity of GGT for heavy alcohol use increases with a lower cut-off for the normal range e.g. 40u/L as opposed to 50u/L.
• In general, GGT is more useful in combination with consumption and other measure of alcohol use (e.g. AUDIT) than as a stand-alone screening test.

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