Acute Intake of Alcohol

Alcohol produces dilation of the skin vessels, flushing, and a sensation of warmth. Alcohol also interferes with the normal cutaneous vasoconstriction in response to cold. The body heat is therefore lost very rapidly and the internal temperature consequently falls. At toxic alcohol levels, the hypothalamic temperature-regulating mechanism becomes depressed and the fall in body temperature becomes pronounced. For these reasons, consuming alcoholic beverages for the purpose of keeping warm in cold weather is obviously irrational. 

---

Another study in healthy subjects found that cheap red wine, but not whisky (both 1 g/kg) delayed the absorption of doxycycline, probably because of the presence of acetic acid, which slows gastric emptying. However, the total absorption was not affected. The authors concluded that acute intake of alcoholic beverages has no clinically relevant effects on the pharmacokinetics of doxycycline. ... 

There is evidence that the consumption of alcohol may increase the serum levels of etretinate in patients taking acitretin. A single case report describes a marked reduction in the effects of isotretinoin following the acute intake of alcohol. 

SSRIs ALCOHOL t risk of sedation Additive CNS depressant effects. Acute ingestion of alcohol inhibits CYP2D6 and CYP2C19, whereas chronic use induces CYP2E1 and CYP3A4 Be aware and caution against excessive alcohol intake... 

Alcohol. Alcohol induces hyperzincuria (8,9). The mechanism is unknown. A direct eflFect of alcohol on renal tubular epithelium may be responsible for hyperzincuria. Acute ingestion of alcohol did not induce zincuria (30) in some experiments, however, Gudbjamason and Prasad (31) reported increased urinary zinc excretion following alcohol intake. This eflFect was evident when complete urine collection was analyzed for zinc during first three-hour and second three-hour periods, following ingestion of six ounces of chilled vodka. 

Herberg (1993) reported a study that assessed the effects on safety of combining kava with ethanol. This was a double blind, placebo-controlled randomized trial of 40 healthy volunteers (ten males and ten females in each group), aged between 18 and 60 years (mean=4l years). The aim of the study was to test the adverse effects on seven safety-related performance variables when adult volunteers combine kava with acute intake of ethanol at a blood alcohol concentration of 0.05%. The battery of performance tests measured vigilance, coordination, reaction time, and concentration. One group received the kava extract WS 1490 alone, and the other group received the kava extract... 

In a study designed to test the effeets of acute alcohol intoxication in epileptics, 25 patients were given a 12 oz (about 340 mL) drink of alcohol 25%. Blood-alcohol levels ranged from 39 to 284 mg%. All patients had signs of alcohol intoxication without any effect on seizure frequency. The metabolism of a single dose of phenytoin was not affected in one study in healthy subjects by the acute ingestion of alcohol. However, the manufacturers say that acute alcoholic intake may increase phenytoin serum levels. ... 

Acute ingestion of alcohol markedly increases the levels of circulating estradiol in women using oral HRT a smaller increase is seen with transdermal HRT. In addition, alcohol intake appears to increase the risk of breast cancer in women receiving HRT. Small amounts of alcohol may possibly improve some aspects of cognitive function in patients using HRT. Estradiol does not affect blood-alcohol levels. 

W. Greenrod, C. S. Stockley, R Burcham, M. Abbey, M. Fenech (2005) Moderate acute intake of de-alcoholised red wine, but not alcohol, is protective against radiation-induced DNA damage ex vivo—Results of a comparative in vivo intervention study in younger men. Mutation Re-search/Fundamental and Molecular Mechanisms of Mutagenesis, 591, 290-301. 

FMD and blood pressure have been often used for the evaluation of the effect of the dietary intake of polyphenols on the protection of the cardiovascular system. Indeed, the basal FMD is increased in healthy subjects after two glasses of red wine with or without alcohol [100] or after consumption of 3 ml/kg of red wine [101]. Similarly, intake of red wine has been shown to restore a normal endothelial function in hypercholesterolemic patients with impaired FMD [99,102]. A study by Papamichael et al. has also shown that acute intake of two glasses of red wine with or without alcohol is able to reduce the endothelial dysfunction induced by the smoking of one cigarette by healthy nonsmokers [103], Moreover, acute intake of two glasses of red wine without alcohol improves FMD in patients with coronary artery disease, while intake of regular red wine was less effective, suggesting that the beneficial effect is due to the polyphenol content rather than the alcohol component of red wines [104]. 

Another factor that impacts urinary steroid profiles is the acute consumption of alcohol.Urinary T/EpiT values increase and A/T levels decrease under the influence of ethanol intake, which necessitates analyses for ethanol (and/or its glucuronic acid conjugate) in urine samples being suspect due to the above mentioned alterations in the steroid profile. ... 

HF medications deserves special attention, as it is the most common cause of acute decompensation and can be prevented. As such, an accurate history regarding diet, food choices, and the patient s knowledge regarding sodium and fluid intake (including alcohol) is valuable in assessing dietary indiscretion. Nonadherence with medical recommendations such as laboratory and other appointment follow-up can also be indicative of non-adherence with diet or medications. 

Alcohol abuse and dependence, widely known as alcoholism, is a major cause of morbidity and mortality. Its acute and chronic toxicity spreads across multiple systems and organs, from child abuse to domestic or public violence to traffic accidents and from cirrhosis to hypertension. Mean life expectancy of alcohol abusers is around 55 years. Alcohol seems involved in several hundred thousand deaths each year in Europe, with considerable added social and health care costs. This is in clear contrast with the little attention paid to the treatment of alcohol dependence and abuse. On the other hand, much is made of the French Paradox , the J curve and the demonstrated cardiovascular benefits of regular moderate wine intake. 

Alcohol, primarily in the form of ethyl alcohol (ethanol), has occupied an important place in the history of humankind for at least 8000 years. In Western society, beer and wine were a main staple of daily life until the 19th century. These relatively dilute alcoholic beverages were preferred over water, which was known to be associated with acute and chronic illness. They provided important calories and nutrients and served as a main source of daily liquid intake. As systems for improved sanitation and water purification were introduced in the 1800s, beer and wine became less important components of the human diet, and the consumption of alcoholic beverages, including distilled preparations with higher concentrations of alcohol, shifted toward their present-day role, in many societies, as a socially acceptable form of recreation. 

Alcohol consumption causes peripheral vasodilatation the person feels warm, body heat is slowly lost, and an overdose can cause rapid hypothermia. An acute dose of 3 to 4 units will increase blood pressure. It will cause irritation to gastric mucosae followed by erosion that heals after 3 to 4 weeks. At least 60% of chronic gastritis is reported with chronic alcoholics. Alcohol intake also affects sexual function. William Shakespeare wrote that alcohol provides the desire but takes away the performance. Alcohol can be source of energy but cannot be used as food. 

Q14 Excessive alcohol consumption damages the pancreas. Patients usually develop pancreatitis after many years of excessive alcohol consumption, but occasionally it can occur after only one year of heavy drinking. There is no safe level of alcohol intake, below which no damage to the pancreas can occur even moderate or social drinkers are at risk. Some people have more than one attack of pancreatitis and recover well from each, but in a few individuals acute pancreatitis can be severe, and a life-threatening illness develops. 

BETA-BLOCKERS ALCOHOL Acute alcohol ingestion may t hypotensive effect. Chronic moderate/heavy drinking 1 hypotensive effect Additive hypotensive effect. Mechanism of opposite effect with chronic intake is uncertain Monitor BP closely as unpredictable responses can occur. Advise patients to drink only in moderation and to avoid large variations in the amount of alcohol drunk... 

Pitsavos, C., Makiilakis, K., Panagiotakos, D. B., Chrysohoou, C., loannidis, 1., Dimosthenopou-los, C., Stefanadis, C., Katsilambros, N. (2005). The J-shape effect of alcohol intake on the risk of developing acute coronary syndromes in diabetic subjects the CARD102000 11 Study. Diabet. Med., 22, 243-248. 

Kava extracts can, if overdosed (>60-120 mg kavapyr-ones/day) and/or taken over a longer period (>3 months), cause hepatotoxicity in the form of hepatic reactions and liver cell necrosis in rare cases, they may even cause cholestasis and acute liver failure (possibly leading to liver transplantation). Risk factors include the concomitant intake of medicaments and alcohol as well as a genetically based deficiency of cytochrome P450 2D6. (99, 116)... 

Acute and chronic ethanol administration or intake and its subsequent withdrawal in experimental animals and in humans exert major effects on tryptophan and serotonin metabolism. The serotonin status is disturbed in animal models of alcoholism and in alcohol-dependent patients characterized by a higher preference for alcohol consumption. A few experimental studies have suggested that some aspects of ethanol toxicity may be improved by the administration of tryptophan.108109 These preliminary findings suggested the possibility of a beneficial effect of added tryptophan on hepatic protein synthesis in ethanol-treated rats, but whether tryptophan administration may be of therapeutic value needs to be established by further investigative studies. 

FOLATE DEFICIENCY Folate deficiency is a common complication of diseases of the small intestine, which interfere with the absorption of dietary folate and the recirculation of folate through the enterohepatic cycle. In acute or chronic alcohohsm, daily intake of dietary folate may be severely restricted, and the enterohepatic cycle of the vitamin may be impaired by toxic effects of alcohol on hepatic parenchymal cells this is the most common cause of folate-deficient megaloblastic erythropoiesis. However, it also is the most amenable to therapy, inasmuch as the reinstitution of a normal diet is sufficient to overcome the effect of alcohol. Disease states characterized by a high rate of cell turnover, such as hemolytic anemias, also may be complicated by folate deficiency. Additionally, drugs that inhibit dihydrofolate reductase (e.g., methotrexate and trimethoprim) or that interfere with the absorption and storage of folate in tissues (e.g., certain anticonvulsants and oral contraceptives) can lower the concentration of folate in plasma and may cause a megaloblastic anemia. 

Mild acute and chronic intoxication from barbiturates is similar to that associated with alcohol, including symptoms of sluggishness, slurred speech, poor memory, and difficulty in thinking. Its effect with alcohol, another CNS depressant, is additive. Death can occur from intake of barbiturates with large amounts of alcohol. 

---