Alcohol Flashcards
What is alcohol use disorder?
-patients’ drinking causes distress or harm
What is binge drinking?
-when BAC is .01 g/dL
Why do people misuse or abuse alcohol
- self medication
- altered mental state
- genetics
What are the characteristics of alcohol?
- Small simple molecule
- Depressant
- Barbiturate like
What can alcohol do with endorphins/GABA/DA?
-Cause a release/increase of endorphins that slows down GABA and cause an increase in DA release
Where is most alcohol absorbed?
-Small intestine but distributes everywhere in the body
What does food do for alcohol consumption?
-Slows the absorption of alcohol in the system
What can alcohol distribute across?
- Placental barrier
- Breast milk
What is the metabolism of alcohol?
-Zero order kinetics (constant rate independent of original concentration/dose)
What is ethanol broken down by?
-Alcohol dehydrogenase
What is ethanol broken down into?
-Acetaldehyde
Where is most alcohol eliminated?
- Urine
- Breath
What occurs if you have a BAC of 5-100 mg/DL (.05 to .1 %)?
- Sedation
- Slower reaction times
What occurs if you have a BAC of 100-200 mg/dL?
- Impaired motor function
- Slurred speech
T/F Abrupt withdrawal of alcohol can be life threatening
True
What does alcohol do for the cardiovascular system?
- Vasodilator
- Can become increase risk for hypertension and Cardiovascular disease at high chronic doses
- Increase you HDL cholesterol (good cholesterol)
What are the physiological effects of alcohol on the liver?
- Alcohol is metabolized here
- Fatty liver
- Cirrhosis
What are the physiological effects of alcohol on the kidney’s?
- Diuretic
- Decrease ADH secretion
- Increase urine secretion
What are the physiological effects of alcohol on the GI tract?
-Increase Acid secretion
What are the physiological effects of alcohol on the immune system?
-Suppress the innate and adaptive
What are the pathophysiological effects of alcohol?
- Cancer (increase risk of GI cancer)
- malnourishment
- fetal alcohol syndrome
- hangover
- tolerance
- dependence
What are the malnourishment effects of alcohol?
-Vitamin deficiencies
What do you see with a hangover?
- Headache
- Nausea
- Dry mouth
What drugs can alcohol interact with?
- p450 associated drugs
- Acetaminophen
- Phenothiazines
- Tricyclic antidepressants
- Sedative hypnotic drugs
- Vasodilators