The patient has a low gravity alcoholism can benefit from a reduction of consumption with new drugs programme

new paradigms and drugs for the treatment of abusive consumption of alcohol that will be presented at Tarragona

chapter summary prepared by Dr. Josep guard Serecigni (psychiatrist senior consultant.) Unit of addictive behaviors. Hospital de la Santa Creu i Sant Pau. (Barcelona) book alcoholism treatment that will be presented at the Conference to be held in Tarragona from 28 to 31 March and which will bring together leading experts in national and international addictions. Dr. Guard will be a presentation on “New paradigm in the treatment of alcoholism” in Congress.

Barcelona, March 2012.- Alcoholism manifests itself through a behaviour addictive drink in excess, which is result of a difficulty to control the consumption of alcohol. Both addictive behavior as the difficulty to control ” can be clinical manifestations of dysfunction of the brain circuits that govern the capacity of control over alcohol consumption.

Continued alcohol abuse causes Adaptive changes in neurotransmission, which destabilize the operation of the nervous system. Chronic alcohol can turn it into a hiperexcitado brain that needs ” alcohol to function normally. In that State of neuroadaptación, when there is an abrupt withdrawal of regular intake of alcohol may appear symptoms of withdrawal, which can be serious and manifest itself in the form of seizures or delirium tremens ”.

Individuals who are alcohol withdrawal require so-called detoxification treatment, when proposed the withdrawal of alcohol. However, most people with alcoholism will not submit a withdrawal syndrome after the withdrawal of alcohol, although if usually present times of urgent need to drink alcohol ( craving ” alcohol) and also difficult to control, especially once started drinking alcohol.

Currently have effective drugs for the treatment of (1) the withdrawal, (2) the craving ”, (3) the difficulty to control alcohol consumption and (4) psychiatric disorders associated with alcoholism. However, benzodiazepines pose a risk of addiction and overdose and, for this reason, it is not advisable to prescribe them for alcoholic patients, once passed the treatment of acute withdrawal (or detoxification treatment). Sedative profile antiepileptic drugs that reduce the neurotransmission noradrenergic and glutamatérgica, favour the renormalization of the State of hiperexcitación of the nervous system and do not have the serious shortcomings with the benzodiazepines for these patients.

The demand for treatment, the person who suffers alcoholism (at least in the initial stages of treatment), is usually that we help to reduce the consumption of alcohol rather than stop drinking (alcohol) altogether. Even many patients who intend to stop drinking, in fact have the expectation that may make some days or occasional consumption. These patients, sooner or later tested again alcohol, and when they do have many chances of relapse.

Opioid receptor antagonist drugs neutralize the effect of deprivation and can prevent timely (alcohol) consumption becoming relapse, especially when the patient is motivated to reduce their consumption of alcohol.

The patient has a low gravity alcoholism can benefit from a program of reduction of the consumption of alcohol with naltrexone or nalmefeno, if your only symptom addictive is the difficulty to control ”. However, if the patient is also alcohol withdrawal will first require a detoxification treatment, and sometimes also a subsequent treatment, for renormalization ” the State of hiperexcitación of your nervous system, which can persist after withdrawal from alcohol and manifest itself in the form of waves of craving ”, symptoms of anxiety, insomnia, altered mood and difficulty controlling alcohol consumption.

Serious alcoholic patients, which presented severe alcohol withdrawal and those who have a serious comorbidity (medical, psychiatric or addictive), require a treatment program geared towards abstention continued alcohol, with the help of specific drugs such as disulfiram and naltrexone, associated to the corresponding psycho-social intervention and the psychopharmaceutical drugs required for the treatment of other diseases psiquiátricas or addictive associated with alcoholism.

But alcoholic patients of low gravity, not with abstinence from alcohol or a serious comorbidity medical, psychiatric or addictive, proposed a substantial reduction in its consumption of alcohol (in quantity and frequency), they strive to not exceed the limits of low-risk drinking and taking an opioid receptor antagonist drugsuch as naltrexone or nalmefeno, you can get a remission of his alcoholism as important as experienced by a person who stops drinking completely.