Alcohol and alcoholism : international journal of the Medical Council on Alcoholism
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Dopamine receptors are associated with reward and dependence towards alcohol. The polymorphisms of dopamine D2 receptor (DRD2) genes have been reported to be involved in susceptibility to alcoholism. Therefore, we investigated the association of three single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in DRD2 and ankyrin repeat and kinase domain containing one (ANKK1) genes with alcohol dependence in Korean subjects, who were classified by the criteria of the Lesch typology. ⋯ The present study showed a significant difference in DRD2 -141C and ANKK1 TaqIA polymorphisms between the AD patients and the controls. Our findings suggest that -141C Ins and TaqIA A1 alleles can be a predisposing factor for alcohol dependence in the Korean population.
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Observational Study
Relationship between blood alcohol concentration and observable symptoms of intoxication in patients presenting to an emergency department.
Clinical and medico-legal decisions often require knowledge of alcohol impairment that is not necessarily revealed by an individual's appearance, and in turn, may not necessarily reflect level of blood alcohol. This study compares clinical signs and symptoms with measured and estimated blood alcohol concentrations (BACs). ⋯ Measured BAC does not correlate well with the outward physical signs of intoxication, especially for chronic drinkers. There is a need for further education on how tolerance masks clinical signs of intoxication for the chronic drinker. BACs should be measured especially in the obtunded where no history (symptoms) can be given by the patient.