Reversal of ethanol-induced hepatic steatosis and lipid peroxidation by taurine: a study in rats

We read with interest the study reported by Kerai et al. inthe July–August (1999) issue of Alcohol and Alcoholism.The authors concluded that hepatic steatosis and lipid peroxidationcaused by chronic alcohol consumption in rats can be reversedby administration of taurine. Furthermore, . . . [Full Text of this Article]FOOTNOTESREFERENCES     

Secondary depression in weaned alcoholics: implications of Lesch's typology of chronic alcoholism

Schuckit (1983) described two types of alcohol-related depression:(1) the common type, in which secondary depression disappearswithout treatment within the first few weeks of abstinence;(2) a less frequent type, primary depression, requiring specifictreatment. It is difficult to anticipate whether an alcoholicpatient needs antidepressive treatment or whether depressionwill remit spontaneously. A potential guide to differentiatedepressed alcoholic patients who might need specific treatmentfor depression could be the typology of Lesch et al. (1990).Based on . . . [Full Text of this Article]ConclusionFOOTNOTESREFERENCES     

Intravenous injection of alcohol by drug injectors: report of three cases

The injection of psychoactive drugs, usually by the intravenousroute, has been recognized for more than a century, and hasbecome more widespread over recent decades (Golding, 1993; Derricotet al., 1999). We have been unable to identify any publishedexamples of the recreational injection of alcohol. We describehere three cases in which intravenous injection of alcohol isreported. Case 1 was a 29-year-old, single, unemployed and homeless man,admitted to hospital for alcohol and diazepam detoxification.He fulfilled ICD-10 criteria . . . [Full Text of this Article]FOOTNOTESREFERENCES     

Alcohol exposure in utero and breast cancer risk later in life

Since the pioneering work of Hiatt and Bawol (1984), there hasamassed a considerable amount of evidence that moderate-to-heavyalcohol consumption increases risk of breast cancer in women(Willett et al., 1987; Longnecker, 1999). A plausible mechanismis by alcohol's effects on circulating hormone levels. Alcoholadministration has been reported to increase circulating oestradiollevels in pre-menopausal women (Reichman et al., 1993); theevidence is mixed in . . . [Full Text of this Article]FOOTNOTESREFERENCES     

The value of oral thiamine

Cook (2000) advocated parental replacement of thiamine as aroutine accompaniment to in-patient alcohol detoxification.The justification is . . . [Full Text of this Article]REFERENCES     

Lipid-lowering drugs and erectile dysfunction

Lipid-lowering drugs and erectile dysfunction We have serious concerns about the review on lipid-loweringdrugs and erectile dysfunction (ED) reported by Rizvi et al.¹Although the authors mention that the technique of systematicreviews     

Determination of ethyl glucuronide in hair samples

Ethyl glucuronide (EtG) is a non-volatile, water-soluble, stable-upon-storage,direct metabolite of ethanol and can be detected in body fluidsand tissues (and also in post-mortem material) for an extendedtime period after the complete elimination of alcohol from thebody (Alt et al., 1997; Schmitt et al., 1997; Seidl et al.,1998; Wurst et al., 1999a,b). The aim of the present Letteris to emphasize . . . [Full Text of this Article]FOOTNOTESREFERENCES     

The volume of the liver in patients correlates to body weight and alcohol consumption

The measurement of liver volume has gained practical use inrelation to liver transplantation (Kawasaki et al., 1993). Livervolume may also relate to the many metabolic processes in whichthe liver is engaged (Homeida et al., 1979; Marchesini et al.,1988; Murry et al., 1995; Reichel et al., 1997; Kwo et al.,1998; Andersen et al., 1999). The present study was undertakento measure liver . . . [Full Text of this Article]FOOTNOTESREFERENCES     

Is daily single dosage of diazepam as effective as chlordiazepoxide in divided doses in alcohol withdrawal--a pilot study

We report on a pilot double-blind study on the effectivenessof divided doses of chlordiazepoxide and a single daily doseof diazepam in the treatment of the alcohol-withdrawal syndrome.While a variety of drugs (chlormethiazole, propranolol and clonidine)have been used for treatment of alcohol-withdrawal symptoms,benzodiazepines remain the drugs of choice for alcohol detoxification(Mayo-Smith, 1997). Diazepam and chlordiazepoxide are both . . . [Full Text of this Article]APPENDIXFOOTNOTESREFERENCES     

Alcohol-dependent patients with neuroendocrine evidence for reduced dopamine d(2) receptor function have decreased platelet monoamine oxidase-B activity

This letter is a report of a re-evaluation of the results obtainedin an earlier study of ours (Balldin et al., 1994) of plateletmonoamine oxidase (MAO)-B activity in alcoholics with reduceddopamine (DA) D₂ receptor function, as assessed by the growthhormone (GH) response to the D₁/D₂ agonist apomorphine (APO),which was published in this journal. The reason for the re-evaluationof the results in our study is a Letter to the Editors of thisjournal by Farren and Dinan (1996) reporting on platelet MAO-Bactivity in alcoholics with reduced DA D₂ receptor function,as assessed by the GH response to the DA D₂ receptor agonistbromocriptine. In the report by Farren and Dinan (1996), fourof eight alcoholics had no increase in GH above baseline, whereasall eight subjects in the control group had the expected GH. . . [Full Text of this Article]FOOTNOTESREFERENCES     

Screening for alcohol misuse

Aira et al.'s constructive paper¹ identifies seven categoriesinfluencing the physician:patient dialogue for alcohol consumption.We recently have completed a study of Senior House Officer (SHO)attitudes to screening for alcohol misuse in Accident and Emergency(A&E) (127 SHOs over 5 years)². Briefly, we compare theexperiences of GPs and A&E staff under the headings identified. Sensitive nature of alcohol drinking     

ON INTRACELLULAR FORMATION OF ETHANOL AND ITS POSSIBLE ROLE IN ENERGY METABOLISM

Despite a great number of papers devoted to studies of the influenceof alcohol on man's health, very few of them discuss the issueof the presence of ethanol in the human body not connected withalcohol consumption. Such ethanol is commonly called endogenous.It is believed to originate from the microbial fermentationof the carbohydrates in the gastro-intestinal tract (Krebs andPerkins, . . . [Full Text of this Article]REFERENCES     

Introduction to personality-biological interactions in alcoholism: 'The Markku Linnoila Memorial Symposium'.

Although a number of specific personality disorders, includinganti-social personality, passive-dependent personality, andexplosive personality, have been associated with the diagnosisof alcoholism, studies of the relationship of underlying personalityand/or temperament to the nature, phenomenology, psychobiology,prognosis, and treatment of alcoholism have occurred much lessfrequently. However, there is a growing body of evidence thatcore or underlying personality and temperament are . . . [Full Text of this Article]FOOTNOTES     

Costing in primary care--is the truth out there?

In this edition of Family Practice, Beale et al.,¹ estimatethe annual medical, nursing and administration costs in twogeneral practices as a function of patient age, sex and CouncilTax valuation band used as a surrogate marker of socio-economicstatus. They report that these costs increase with age and reducingtax valuation band and conclude that costing exercises are difficultbut important for NHS planning and resource allocation. Howrelevant are these claims? Deriving and presenting cost data In market systems what something costs is determined by itsmarket price, a result of the interplay of supply and demand.In non-market systems such as health care,     

'Sokkor': research into the contextual facilitators barriers involved in the management of patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus must now intensify extend into all cultures worldwide

The paper by Brown et al.¹ is an important insight into thecontextual facilitators and barriers involved in the managementof patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus. Research into     

Addendum

Since this article was written a report in The Lancet (T. W.Hoskins et al. (1973) 1, 116) has also shown that an injectablevaccine using the A/Hong Kong strain gave substantial protectionagainst the A/England/42/72 variant.     

Patient consent rates for video-recording

We read with great interest the article by Neal et al.¹ aboutconsent rates for video-recording general practice consultations.In Estonia we     

Factors influencing contraceptive use in Tehran

Tehrani et al. found that age, education and familiarity withcontraceptive methods influenced contraceptive use in Iranianwomen attending hospitals.¹ We decided to     

Internet-based surveys of health professionals

Braithwaite et al.¹ suggest that Internet-based surveys of healthprofessionals may provide an attractive alternative to postaland telephone questionnaires. It is interesting to speculateon how the feasibility of an Internet-based approach may     

Contraceptive use by medical students whilst on holiday

Tehrani et al.¹ found that educational level of women and theirhusbands was related to contraceptive use in Tehran. They foundthat 56% of illiterate women and 70%