[Physical diseases in alcoholism]

Nihon Rinsho. 2015 Sep;73(9):1546-51.
[Article in Japanese]

Abstract

Rapid excessive alcohol drinking frequently causes disturbance of consciousness due to head trauma, brain edema, hypoglycemia, hyponatremia, hepatic coma and so on, provoked by acute alcohol intoxication. Rapid differential diagnosis and management are extremely important to save a life. On the other hands, the chronic users of alcohol so called alcoholism has many kinds of physical diseases such as liver diseases (i.e., fatty liver, alcoholic hepatitis, alcoholic liver cirrhosis and miscellaneous liver disease), diabetes mellitus, injury to happen in drunkenness, pancreas disease (i.e., acute and chronic pancreatitis and deterioration of chronic pancreatitis), gastrontestinal diseases (i.e., gastroduodenal ulcer), and so on. Enough attention should be paid to above mentioned diseases, otherwise they would turn worse more with continuation and increase in quantity of the alcohol. It should be born in its mind that the excessive drinking becomes the weapon threatening life.

Publication types

  • English Abstract
  • Review

MeSH terms

  • Alcohol Drinking / adverse effects*
  • Alcoholism / complications*
  • Humans
  • Liver Cirrhosis, Alcoholic / complications*
  • Liver Diseases / complications*
  • Pancreatic Diseases / complications*
  • Pancreatitis, Chronic / complications*