The pharmaceutical company Lundbeck enrolled more than 2000 alcoholics in the study. Two- thirds of them had never been treated for alcohol abuse. After the first month of using the drug Nalmefene, most started to drink less alcohol and have fewer "heavy drinking" days. After a year on the drug therapy, their alcohol consumption had been reduced by 50%.

Nalmefene is an opioid antagonist that reduces a person’s taste for alcohol and desire to drink. It can be prescribed once a day or on an "as needed" basis. The drug is proving promising in the treatment of other addictions, including opiate dependency and even behavioral-based addictions, such as gambling.

The new drug treatment is considered controversial because a person with an alcohol dependency may be able to drink in moderation. A Danish market research team advised the Lundbeck company that it may have difficulty selling the drug to physicians and addiction treatment specialists because the most usual protocol is to advise recovering alcoholics never to drink at all. Nevertheless, officials at Lundbeck said they planned to continue their experiments and anticipate making the product available.

"We are pleased that we now have reached a stage with Nalmefene where we can plan the regulatory process with expected submission of the (European Union marketing) application by the end of the year," said Anders Gersel Pedersen, director of development at Lundbeck.

The United States Food and Drug Administration has approved three drugs for alcoholism recovery programs. These include Antabuse (disulfiram), which causes people to become nauseous if they drink alcohol; Naltrexone (revia), which reduces alcohol cravings and blocks its effects in the brain; and acamprosate (Campral), which treats alcohol withdrawal symptoms.

Researchers from the Center for Studies Of Addiction in the Treatment Research Center at The University Of Pennsylvania School Of Medicine studied 170 alcohol-dependent patients with major depressive disorders for 14 weeks. Two different drugs were used: Naltrexone, a drug used to treat alcohol dependence, and an antidepressant medication called sertraline. Everyone in the study received weekly cognitive behavioral therapy, a form of individual counseling effective in substance abuse treatment. However, one group took only Naltrexone; another group took only sertraline; one group took a combination of the two drugs; and finally, one group took no drugs at all, just placebos. The group that took the combination had a higher rate of alcohol abstinence (54%) compared to 21% in the Naltrexone-only group, 23% in the sertraline-only group, and 23% in the placebo group.

The authors of the study said that doctors treating addictions are often reluctant to use drug therapies, because they "do not want to treat drugs with drugs."

"Fortunately, this attitude is fading as scientists impart knowledge to professionals and the public about the possibilities of correcting the neurobiology of addiction by treating the addicted brain with certain medications," author Helen Pettinati wrote in her report published in the journal Psychiatric Times. "While these findings require replication, they provide a practical recommendation to integrate or combine two medications — one for treating alcohol dependence and one for treating depression. The combined pharmacotherapy, with some platform counseling that integrates support and advice for both disorders, can provide an aggressive approach to treating co-occurring depression and alcohol dependence."

Statistics compiled on 43,093 adults in the National Epidemiologic Survey on Alcohol and Related Conditions found that 20% of those with major depressive disorders also had alcohol dependent disorders. Depression and alcohol dependence are risk factors for one another, and severity in one is associated with severity in the other. Alcohol dependence makes depression lasts longer. Patients who are depressed after they stop drinking are more likely to relapse into heavy drinking. Studies have also found that untreated depression predicts the worst outcome for alcoholic dependence.

The reason physicians usually do not treat the two disorders simultaneously is medications react with one another and with alcohol. Also, if the alcohol dependence is what causes the depression, then the depression will go away once the person stops drinking. In those cases, taking antidepressant drugs is not necessary.

Many physicians believe that genetic risk factors for mood disorders, including depression, may overlap for risk factors for alcohol dependence, which may be why the two disorders tend to "travel" together.

The findings referred to in Science Daily show how gender roles among heterosexual couples experience radical strains when the male partner experiences depression and the female tries to help. Depression is most often thought of as being a "woman’s" health issue and is often underreported among men. Therefore, little is known about how heterosexual couples handle it when the male is depressed.

The study underscores that women play an important role in helping their male partner manage depression. Since relationships are fundamental to how health decisions are made within the family dynamic, we need more research to better understand those dynamics.

The study found the "trading places" scenario to be most common pattern in heterosexual relationships. Partners typically took on atypical female and male roles in order to cope with the challenges created by the male’s depression. In these cases, men took on the homemaker role and the women went to work as the breadwinner.

In the "business as usual" scenario, the couples downplayed the problems caused by the male’s depression and held firm to gender roles despite the male’s struggle with depression as they maintained their careers.

In the "edgy tensions" pattern, the couples were caught in dysfunctional relationships. Each already held ideas of gender roles that differed from their partner’s view and they wrestled with resentment. Men often were involved with alcohol or illicit drugs to manage their depression.

The study was conducted on men from 20 to 53 years of age who had differing levels of education, from some high school to graduate level degrees.

In a recent study, published in the January edition of Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research, researchers examined the relationship between alcohol consumption and injury to determine how alcohol increases the risk for injury.

Corresponding author Ted R. Miller, senior research scientist at the Pacific Institute for Research and Evaluation, and colleagues wanted to know the extent to which serious injury was due to the consumption of alcohol. The researchers examined the proportional decline in injury when alcohol was not a factor.

The researchers began by investigating data about national alcohol consumption and looking at metabolism rates for alcohol in order to establish the number of hours that were spent "alcohol positive" versus "alcohol negative" for heavy drinkers. The results indicated that alcohol use is heavily associated with hospitalized injury. For heavy drinkers, despite an ability to better tolerate alcohol than those who drink moderately, the risk for injury more than tripled when they were drinking.

When heavy drinkers were alcohol-positive, their risk was 4.5 times that when sober. While heavy drinkers can, within limits, tolerate alcohol better, they still significantly raise their risk for injury when drinking. In addition, heavy drinkers are 1.35 times more likely than non-heavy drinkers to experience an injury when sober. This may be due to the effects of a hangover.

The study also found that alcohol raises the risk for near drowning, assault and non-elderly fall. A large number of hospitalizations for injury are associated with alcohol; 36 percent of assaults resulting in hospitalization and 21 percent of injuries are connected with alcohol consumption by the person injured.

Moderate drinkers also have a high risk of injury requiring hospitalization. In fact, their rate is even higher than that of heavy drinkers. This is likely due to moderate drinkers being less accustomed to the effects of alcohol.

This information is helpful in understanding the risks of injury while under the influence of alcohol on beverage bottles. Understanding the significant rates of injury associated with heavy alcohol consumption may help consumers make wise alcohol-related decisions.

The research highlighted that alcohol does not help with the effects of certain diseases and can, in fact, cause a longer period of recovery after burns, injury and physical trauma. Alcohol is further known to hinder the response of anti-viral immunity, specifically in the liver. Alcohol alters the function of monocytes and consumption causes a double-negative result of decreasing anti-viral effects of IFN and increasing inflammation of pro-inflammatory TNFa.

The research team focused on two disease-related pathways. The results showed that the activation of both pathways resulted in increases in anti-viral cytokine IFN levels. However, the result was decreased by an alcohol treatment that was equivalent to four to five drinks per day for a week. Likewise, the stimulation of the pathways showed a rise in levels for the pro-inflammatory cytokine TNFa.

Researchers concluded that alcohol has a strong effect by inhibiting IFN production of monocytes regardless of the danger signal to both pathways. In addition, prolonged alcohol exposure changes the immune balance of the activation of the monocytes and thus impairs the host response.

A study conducted in Finland sought to understand the discrepancies between advances made among those with Type 1 diabetes, or those diagnosed early in life, and the worsening survival rate among those whose diabetes was diagnosed later.

The study’s findings reveal that alcohol has become a significant cause of death among those with Type 1 diabetes in the last three decades. In addition, the early onset Type 1 diabetes survival rates of those diagnosed during earlier childhood have gotten better over the years. By contrast, those diagnosed in later childhood and early adulthood, from 15 and 29 years, have gotten worse in the past 30 years.

In other words, those who were diagnosed early with Type 1 diabetes have seen a significant increase in survival rates, while those diagnosed later have seen a decline in survival rates.

Despite many advances in diabetes care, Type 1 diabetes is still associated with a short lifespan, often caused by acute or chronic complications. This is the first study to present information about the contrast between diabetes diagnosed early and later in life.

The researchers recruited 17,306 patients diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes. The subjects were all under 30 years old between 1970 and 1999. Over a time frame of approximately 21 years, the researchers examined the causes of death.

From 1970 to 2007, early onset patients experienced a significant improvement in survival rates, but the researchers explain that this is due to fewer chronic problems caused by diabetes during the first 20 years after diagnosis of the disease.

However, among patients who were diagnosed later, mortality went up over time, with acute and chronic problems worsening for these patients. The authors attribute the mortality rates to involvement with drugs and alcohol, in addition to acute diabetes complications.

In fact, the authors of the study report that 39 percent of deaths among patients diagnosed in later childhood or early adulthood were due to drug- and alcohol-related causes.

The authors of the study believe that the study’s findings highlight the value of strong relationships between doctor and patient, including communication and guidance as the patient enters the years when drugs and alcohol may present themselves as one of the issues the diabetic must face.

According to an article in Medical News Today, general practitioners in Scotland realized that on a single day last April there were more than 5,500 consultations that took place in their country related to alcohol. This equates to nearly 1.4 million visits to doctors in one year, making up 6% of all consultations for GP’s and over £28 million in costs to health systems. Most of us know that drinking large amounts of alcohol on a routine basis has serious consequences for our health and is also not a cheap habit to have.

Taxpayers in Scotland pay roughly £3.56 billion a year due to alcohol consumption and related healthcare costs. On an average Scotland day:

• Alcohol-related crimes and violence will cost £97.5 million and will kill five people.
• 98 people will enter a hospital due to alcohol-related incidents.
• 23 people will commit a drunken driving offense.
• There will be 450 victims of brutal crimes that will notice their assailants have been drinking alcohol.

The chairman of the BMA in Scotland, Dr. Brian Keighley, says their government has embraced policies on the challenges of alcohol misuse but there is a failure on the Scottish Parliaments’ side to support pricing to affect the drinking habits of the Scottish. Keighley says it is imperative that parliament support their legislation on introducing new pricing for alcohol sales.

Scotland’s BMA realizes that if this alcohol trend continues their services will struggle to handle this problem.

A New Threat to Drinkers

Recently, a research team at the Karolinska Institute in Sweden discovered a new problem associated with alcohol use that was not linked to drinking wine or beer. Led by Dr. Omid Sadr-Azodi, the team found that just 4cl of spirits could increase the risk for an acute pancreatitis attack.

The study, published online by the British Journal of Surgery, followed 84,601 people between the ages of 46 and 84 over an average period of 10 years. The sample was comprised of participants located in Vastmanland and Uppsala. Over the 10-year period, 513 of the participants developed acute pancreatitis.

Dr. Sadr-Azodi explained that the study’s results show a steady increase in the risk of having an acute attack of pancreatitis, with a 4cl drink raising the risk by about 10 percent. Drinking 20cl of spirits on one occasion increased the risk of acute pancreatitis by 52 percent.

Even Once May Be Too Much

The researchers also found that average monthly consumption of alcohol was not associated with the measurement of the occurrence of acute pancreatitis. The participants included in the study generally consumed alcohol within acceptable ranges, with use remaining in the range of one to two drinks per day.

The study’s authors listed several key findings:

• The average age of patients who were diagnosed with pancreatitis was 64.
• For 56 percent of cases, the cause of acute pancreatitis was determined to be alcohol or an unknown cause (66 percent of these cases were men).
• Gallstones were to blame for 44 percent of the cases, of which 48 percent were men.

The highest rate of single-occasion alcohol consumption was among males and younger patients. High single-occasion spirits consumption is linked to a significantly higher rate of diabetes. Those with high single-occasion spirits consumption had 9 percent higher levels of diabetes than those with lower alcohol consumption, at 6 percent.

The study also found a correlation among education levels, lifestyle and drinking habits. Those participants with higher education levels who never smoked and consumed fruits and vegetables were less likely to drink beer and spirits heavily.

The problem is a complete contrast to most other nations where this is typically a problem among teenagers and young adults, according to researchers. However, in Chinese society alcohol is thought to be a societal tool that holds value. It is encouraged for older men and women to drink during lunches or dinners in order to improve relationships with business associates or friends and to help maintain a friendly, relaxed atmosphere.

It appears that binge drinking has even become prevalent among the moderate drinker. New research proves that a person’s pattern of drinking is associated with an increased risk for death. Research also shows a higher chance of cardiovascular problems and injuries, both intentional and unintentional, that occur among even those with light to moderate drinking patterns.

The researchers studied almost 50,000 Chinese, with 53% being women 15 to 69 years old in 2007. All of the participants were personally interviewed regarding their sociodemographic factors and their present drinking patterns. The results proved that almost 36% of current drinkers had at least one alcoholic drink in the past year. Male drinking was 55.6% and binge drinking was defined as over 50 to 40 grams respectively, in just one day during the past year.

Interestingly, in China, the drinking rate increased with the amount of higher education and income levels. Researchers say this may be because in China people with greater educational achievements gain a higher status in social circles and thus are more inclined to partake in these social interactions.

Whether in a pool or in the ocean, alcohol adds great risk to swimming. Just as it does for non-swimmers, alcohol negatively affects ones judgment while increasing the likelihood that they will engage in high risk behavior. For the ocean swimmer this could mean swimming further out than is actually safe or insensitivity to body temperature from an extended period in cold water leading to hypothermia. In some cases, the body loses its designed ability to drive blood to its core to maintain necessary body core temperature. For surfers it could mean choosing to attempt waves that don’t match their true skill level. Swimmers at the neighborhood pool are also at risk after consuming alcohol. Divers with impaired judgment may strike their head on the diving board or attempt to dive into water that is far too shallow.

Boating, even fishing, becomes more dangerous when alcohol is being consumed. In fact, alcohol is related to 60% of boating fatalities. Boat operators with as little as .1% blood alcohol content (BAC) have a 16x greater likelihood of dying in a boating accident compared to boat operators with 0% BAC. This is because not only judgment, but balance, vision and ability to react are all impaired when alcohol is consumed. Something as simple as standing in the boat can lead to tragedy when the person falls overboard because they were drinking alcohol.

Finally, not only will alcohol make it more likely for people on the water to end up in a dangerous situation, alcohol can also make it harder for those people to escape the danger. One example: drinking alcohol produces physiological changes that can affect a person’s ability to call for help. Normally, when water enters a person’s windpipe it precipitates a reflex action to close the windpipe. Alcohol can make it difficult for the person in danger to maintain an even and regular breathing pattern. In fact, alcohol can trigger spasms which close the airway entirely.

Water sports are part of the joy of summer. Sharing cocktails or a beer with friends in the great outdoors can also be a fun way to relax and enjoy the vacation months. It is important however to realize the inherent danger of combining these two pastimes and choose instead to enjoy your pleasures unmixed.