Medical cosnequences of alcohol Flashcards
How much alcohol should be drank per week?
Not regulary drink more than 14 units a week ideally spread over 3 days
What are the statistic of mortality and death in scotland?
3000 deaths a year are attribtable to alcohol making it 1 in every 20 deaths
What are the acute effects on the CNS due to alcohol?
Accidents and violence
What are the acute effects on the GI tract due to alcohol?
Oesophagitis, gastritis/ ulceration
Acute pancreatitis
What are the acute effects on the respiratory tract due to alcohol?
Overdose
Aspiration
What are the chronic effects of alchol on the GI tract?
Stomach, liver, pancreas
What are the chronic effects of alcohol on the CV system?
Hypertension
Cardiomyopathy
MI
Stroke
What are the chronic effects of alcohol on the CNS?
Neuropathies
Cerebellar degenration
Dementia
Wernicke - Korsakoff’s syndrome
What are the chronic effects of alcohol on muscles?
Proximal myopathy
Oestoporesis
What are the chronic effects of alcohol on the hematologic system?
Anaemia
Bone marrow suppresion
What can foetal alcohol syndrome result in?
Growth deficiency
Mental retardation
Attention learing disabilites
Behavioural problems
What is the mainpathway of alcohol breakdown?
Alcohol is broken up into acetaldehyde which can then cause inflammation via the activation of TNF-alpha, hepatocyte damage and fibrosis
What can malabsorption lead to?
Impaired regeneration
What is the progression of alcohol related liver disease?
90-100% of peeople will develop fatty liver
Of these people, 20% will develop cirrhosis
Another 35% will develop alcoholic hepatitis and from these up to 70% will develop cirrhosis
What does cirrhosis put you at a higher risk for?
Cancer - hepatocellular carcinoma
What are the symptoms of alcoholic liver disease?
Malaise Nausea Hepatomegaly Fever Jaundice Sepsis Encephalopathy Ascites Renal failure Death
What are signs of chronic liver disease?
Stigmata: spiders, fetor, encephalopathy
Synthetic dysfunction
Prolonged prothrombin time, hypoalbuminaemia
What are the signs of portal hypertension?
Caput medusa
Hypersplenism
Thrombocytopenia
What are the features of alcoholic hepatitis on examination?
Recent excess alcohol
Bilirubin of more than 80 mol/l
Exclusion of other liver disease
AST < 500 (AST: ALT ratio >1.5)
What are the clinical features of alcoholic hepatits?
Hepatomegaly
Fever
Leucocytosis
Hepatic bruit
