Alcohol Basics
Beer, wine, and liquor are compared by how much of this psychoactive chemical they contain.
What is ethanol?
What is judgement?
This occurs when a person needs more alcohol than before to get the same effect.
What is tolerance?
Long-term heavy drinking can weaken this body defense system, making infections more likely.
What is the immune system?
Alcohol and other drugs can temporarily hide, imitate, or worsen psychiatric symptoms, making assessment more difficult.
What is masking?
About 14 grams of ethanol equal one of these, regardless of if it's a 12 oz beer or 1.5 oz liquor.
What is a standard drink?
These episodes involve memory loss for events that happened while intoxicated.
What are blackouts?
This condition develops when the body adapts to alcohol and reacts badly when alcohol is absent.
What is dependence?
Heavy alcohol use can contribute to heartburn, ulcers, gastritis, and chronic diarrhea in this body system.
What is the digestive system?
When substance use and a psychiatric disorder occur together, this is the clinical term for that combination.
What is a co-occurring disorder?
This pattern of drinking raises blood alcohol concentration to 0.08g/dL or higher, often with about 2 hours.
What is binge drinking?
What is pancreatitis?
Tremors, nausea, insomnia, agitation, and confusion after stopping alcohol are signs of this.
What is withdrawal?
Alcohol use can increase the risk of several types of this disease, including of the mouth, throat, esophagus, colon, and breast.
What is cancer?
This 10-item screening tool uses a 0-40 score range; 8 or higher suggests unhealthy alcohol use, and 20 or higher suggests alcohol use disorder.
What is the AUDIT?
This organ's limited metabolism rate is why drinking faster can raise blood alcohol concentrations.
What is the liver?
High blood pressure, irregular heartbeats, stroke risk, and weakened heart function are effects of alcohol on this body system.
What is the cardiovascular system?
These false sights or sounds can occur during severe alcohol withdrawal.
What are hallucinations?
Heavy drinking can interfere with hormone regulation and is linked with diabetes, infertility, and menstrual irregularity in this body system.
What is the endocrine system?
This medication for alcohol use disorder works as an opioid receptor antagonist and can reduce alcohol craving and relapse risk.
What is naltrexone?
Alcohol increases this major inhibitory neurotransmitter, while repeated exposure can lead the brain to increase glutamate activity.
What is GABA (gamma-aminobutyric acid)?
After long-term alcohol exposure, increase activity of this excitatory neurotransmitter helps explain withdrawal symptoms like tremors, seizures, and cravings.
What is glutamate?
Altered mental status, hallucinations, abnormally fast breathing, loss of muscle control, and possible cardiovascular collapse are signs of this severe alcohol withdrawal condition.
What is delirium tremens?
Confusion plus problems walking and talking can point to this alcohol-related brain disorder caused by thiamine deficiency.
What is Wernicke encephalopathy?
This lab marker can help detect sustained heavy alcohol use because chronic alcohol exposure changes the glycosylation pattern of transferrin.
What is carbohydrate-deficient transferrin?