Veldt et al evaluated patients who used alcohol based on clinical and laboratory findings. The authors are from Centre Hospitalier Universitaire in Rennes, France.
Alcohol Intake
Biochemical Markers
Category
none, confirmed
all normal
abstinent
< 3 units per day if male, < 2 units per day if female
all normal
sober
alternating sobriety and excessive intake
variable
relapse
> 3 units per day if male, > 2 units per day if female
NA
excessive by intake
present but amount unknown
abnormal without other explanation
excessive by injury
Biochemical markers were considered normal:
(1) negative breath, blood and/or urine alcohol
(2) normal MCV
(3) normal GGT
Problems in evaluation:
(1) absence of or unreliability in reports of alcohol intake
(2) abnormal biochemical markers caused by another disorder
