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Different drinking patterns for women and men with alcohol dependence with and without alcoholic cirrhosis.

Stokkeland K, Hilm G, Spak F, Franck J, Hultcrantz R

Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden. knut.stokkeland@hsf.gotland.se

AIM: The aim of our study was to investigate if there were differences in drinking patterns in patients with alcohol dependence (AD), with or without cirrhosis. METHODS: We examined three groups in regard to differences in drinking patterns. We collected information from 50 patients with alcoholic cirrhosis (AC), 50 patients with AD, and 40 patients with non-alcoholic cirrhosis (NAC). We used the structured interview Lifetime Drinking History (LDH) to measure the alcohol consumed. Information regarding the total lifetime alcohol intake (LAI), drinking days (DD), drinks per drinking day (DDD), their beverage preferences, and their binge consumption was collected during interviews. RESULTS: Women drank less than men. Women with AC reported 9,198 drinks as binge drinking compared to 25,890 drinks for women with AD without liver cirrhosis (P < 0.05), Women with AC reported 14,009 drinks of alcohol consumed during their lifetime compared to 45,658 drinks consumed by men with AC (P < 0.0001). Women with AD had drunk 5.8 DDD, and men had 8.5 DDD (P < 0.05). Both women and men with AC had significantly fewer DDD compared to men and women with AD without cirrhosis, 4.4 drinks for women (P = 0.046) and 6.2 for men (P = 0.048) with AC. CONCLUSIONS: Patients with AC seem to be predisposed to the hepatotoxic effects of alcohol- and the affected women seem to be even more sensitized. Binge drinking, rather than continuous drinking, does not seem to be especially associated with the development of cirrhosis. That women had drunk less alcohol during binge drinking further emphasizes this.

Published 18 December 2007 in Alcohol Alcohol, 43(1): 39-45.
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