1/285. Focal rhabdomyolysis and brachial plexopathy: an association with heroin and chronic ethanol use.A 22-year-old man presented with acute swelling of the left neck and associated weakness of the left arm upon awakening after having snorted heroin. He had consumed large amounts of ethanol regularly for 7 years. serum creatine kinase was greater than 19,000 units/l. A diagnosis of focal rhabdomyolysis and left brachial plexopathy was made. Focal rhabdomyolysis with associated plexopathy is an uncommon but recognized complication of acute heroin use. Chronic ethanol use may have a "sensitizing" role in the pathogenesis of this syndrome.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = heroin (Clic here for more details about this article) |
2/285. Characteristics and prognosis of alcoholic doctors.Five medically qualified women and 36 men who were being treated for alcoholism at a london postgraduate hospital were studied. Most were middle-aged and at an advanced stage of alcoholism. They had usually started drinking heavily in the wake of well-established drug dependence or other psychiatric disorder; as students or housemen; and in the armed forces. Thirty-six doctors were followed up for a mean of 63 months. Five doctors either killed themselves or died of cirrhosis, and nine persisted in almost continuous dependent drinking, while seven completely overcame their alcohol problem and 10 had only occasional relapses. Their prealcoholic careers had ranged from repeated failure to spectacular success, but of 29 doctors alive at follow-up only eight were practising satisfactorily.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 12.178228145985keywords = dependence (Clic here for more details about this article) |
3/285. Booze and blood: the effects of acute and chronic alcohol abuse on the hematopoietic system.Acute and chronic alcohol abuse are common conditions in patients admitted to hospitals. Alcohol has widespread direct and indirect effects on the hematologic system which can mimic and/or obscure other disorders. Leukocyte, erythrocyte, and thrombocyte production and functions are affected directly. liver damage secondary to alcohol abuse also impacts red blood cells also impacts red blood cells and the hemostatic mechanisms. Nutritional deficiencies are caused not only by poor dietary habits practiced by alcohol abusers, but by the effect of alcohol on the absorption, storage, and utilization of several vitamins. Identifying these numerous effects results in a more comprehensive and clinically accurate understanding of the patients hematologic status.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 2.1581787725538keywords = abuse (Clic here for more details about this article) |
4/285. rhabdomyolysis associated with naltrexone.OBJECTIVE: To report a possible association between naltrexone therapy and the development of rhabdomyolysis in one patient. CASE SUMMARY: A 28-year-old white man in good physical health was started on naltrexone 50 mg/d for inpatient treatment of alcohol dependence and depression. A routine serum chemistry panel obtained on day 9 of naltrexone therapy showed marked new elevations in creatine kinase and aspartate aminotransferase. The patient remained asymptomatic and did not develop renal insufficiency. The serum enzyme concentrations returned to normal within eight days of naltrexone discontinuation. DISCUSSION: rhabdomyolysis has not been previously reported to occur in patients during treatment with naltrexone. alcoholism may result in a reversible acute muscle syndrome, but our patient did not fit the appropriate clinical profile for such a syndrome. Additionally, the other prescribed medications could not be implicated as possible causative agents. CONCLUSIONS: This case report illustrates a possible association between naltrexone therapy and rhabdomyolysis.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 12.178228145985keywords = dependence (Clic here for more details about this article) |
5/285. Huntington's disease and alcohol abuse.The dopamine, glutamate and GABA systems are known to mediate the effects of alcohol on the movement disorders, though their exact roles are not clear. Thus, use of alcohol has implications for pathogenesis as well as management of the movement disorders. These implications are discussed citing a patient who had a strong family history of Huntington's disease and in whom movement disorder and behavioral problems were manifest under alcohol use and withdrawal, but not while being abstinent.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1.2332450128879keywords = abuse (Clic here for more details about this article) |
6/285. association of a regulatory polymorphism in the promoter region of the monoamine oxidase A gene with antisocial alcoholism.We analyzed a novel functional 30-bp repeat polymorphism in the promoter region of the X-chromosomal monoamine oxidase A gene (MAOA) to test whether length variation of the repeat polymorphism contributes to variation in the individual vulnerability to antisocial behavior and liability to alcohol dependence. The repeat number (3-5) of the MAOA polymorphism was assessed in 488 male subjects of German descent, a sample comprising 185 psychiatrically screened control subjects and 303 alcohol-dependent subjects including 59 alcoholics with antisocial personality disorder. The frequency of the low-activity 3-repeat allele was significantly increased in 59 antisocial alcoholics compared to 185 control subjects (51 vs. 35%; P = 0.031) and to 244 alcoholics without antisocial personality disorder (51 vs. 32%; P = 0.008), respectively. We found no significant difference in the frequency of the 3-repeat allele between 244 alcoholics without an antisocial personality disorder and the control subjects. Our findings suggest that the low-activity 3-repeat allele of the MAOA promoter polymorphism confers increased susceptibility to antisocial behavior rather than alcohol dependence per se in alcohol-dependent males.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 24.35645629197keywords = dependence (Clic here for more details about this article) |
7/285. The 'dop' system, alcohol abuse and social control amongst farm workers in South Africa: a public health challenge.Many farm workers in south africa continue to live and work under adverse conditions that are the legacy of apartheid policies. Despite its official prohibition, the arrangement by which workers are given alcohol' as a benefit of employment, known as the 'dop' system, appears to persist. Even though it is a minority of farms that currently actively practice the dop system, the ramifications of the historical 'institutionalisation of massive alcohol consumption are widespread. Heavy alcohol consumption is not only directly injurious to the health of farm workers and their families, but places them at risk to various social and environmental hazards. This is illustrated in a case of pesticide poisoning in which 24 workers were poisoned when given wine contaminated with the carbamate insecticide aldicarb. The case illustrates (i) the ongoing application of the dop system on farms in south africa and (ii) the interaction between social factors and chemical exposures amongst farm workers. Public perceptions about the natural tendencies of 'coloured' people to drink heavily have much to do with perpetuating the dop system, and reinforcing a system geared towards the social control of rural farm workers and their families. The dop system poses a major challenge to the public health authorities in south africa who are charged with the task of restructuring health services to address the human rights and health needs of marginal farming communities within a primary health care framework.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1.2332450128879keywords = abuse (Clic here for more details about this article) |
8/285. head and neck cancers associated with Madelung's disease.BACKGROUND: Madelung's disease is a rare lipodystrophy that presents with multiple fatty masses in the neck, trunk, and upper extremities. The fatty accumulation is considered a benign disease, but compression of the aerodigestive tract may occur in long-standing disease. methods: Eight Chinese patients with Madelung's disease were reviewed. All were male, aged 48 to 67 years, with a history of disease ranging from 4 to 20 years. Two of the eight patients developed aerodigestive symptoms and were subsequently found to have head and neck cancers. These two patients are described. RESULTS: The possible mechanism that may account for an increase in malignant tumors of the airway in this group of patients is the synergistic effect of smoking and alcohol abuse as risk factors for both Madelung's disease and malignant tumors of the airway. Currently it is recommended that these patients should have their fatty lesions removed surgically. The removal of fat facilitates examination of the neck for signs of cervical lymphadenopathy in malignant disease. CONCLUSIONS: patients with Madelung's disease should be followed regularly. The development of aerodigestive symptoms should be fully investigated with endoscopy and imaging. The cause of symptoms should not be attributed to fatty compression until a carcinoma of the upper airway has been excluded.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 0.30831125322197keywords = abuse (Clic here for more details about this article) |
9/285. bulimia nervosa and alcohol dependence. A case report of a patient enrolled in a randomized controlled clinical trial.bulimia nervosa and alcohol use disorders frequently co-occur. A review of the literature, however, reveals a paucity of information on treatment of patients with these comorbid conditions. We present a case report of a 34-year-old Caucasian female with a 20-year history of bulimia nervosa with co-occurring alcohol dependence, who participated in a randomized placebo-controlled medication augmentation trial for bulimia nervosa. The patient served as a pilot subject who met the exclusionary criterion of alcohol dependence, but received all the assessment and intervention procedures of the clinical trial for bulimia nervosa. Despite double-blind random assignment to a placebo condition, the patient's symptoms of bulimia nervosa substantially improved over the course of the 5-week efficacy trial. We hypothesize that this improvement was due to concurrent abstinence from alcohol rather than a placebo effect.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 73.069368875909keywords = dependence (Clic here for more details about this article) |
10/285. Managing alcohol-related problems in the primary care setting.Although alcohol-related problems are a significant source of morbidity and mortality in the united states, denial and resistance to treatment by patients and their families make detection challenging. Primary care providers may find it difficult to confront the patient who drinks excessively; however, early intervention can lower morbidity and prevent progressive damage to family and social relationships. Routine alcohol screening of all patients may assist the primary care provider in effectively identifying and treating alcohol abuse. Although abstinence is the primary goal for patients with alcohol-related problems, decreasing intake is also beneficial and may be accomplished with brief primary care interventions. The management of outpatient alcohol detoxification is increasingly provided by primary care providers in managed care environments, but requires careful assessment of the patient's support system, close provider supervision, and appropriate pharmacologic support.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 0.30831125322197keywords = abuse (Clic here for more details about this article) |
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