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Psychiatric Implications of Alcoholism and Traumatic Brain Injury
Author(s) -
Weinstein David D.,
Martin Peter R.
Publication year - 1995
Publication title -
the american journal on addictions
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.997
H-Index - 76
eISSN - 1521-0391
pISSN - 1055-0496
DOI - 10.1111/j.1521-0391.1995.tb00267.x
Subject(s) - psychiatry , traumatic brain injury , alcohol abuse , neurochemical , dual diagnosis , substance abuse , medicine , alcohol dependence , clinical psychology , psychology , alcohol , neuroscience , biochemistry , chemistry
The authors examined the synergism between pathologic patterns of alcohol consumption and traumatic brain injury (TBI) and its implications for psychiatric practice. The information that forms the basis of this review was identified by a computer‐assisted search of the English‐language literature for appropriate articles. The literature suggests that alcohol abuse/dependence can precipitate behavior resulting in head trauma and that chronic alcohol abuse potentiates the mechanical and neurochemical processes involved in TBI, often resulting in a subsequent dual diagnosis of alcohol dependence and organic mental disorder. The magnitude of clinical morbidity, as documented by a broad range of epidemiologic studies associated with this topic, is considerable, and the authors hope it may be significantly reduced with increased education of health care professionals and with the education and psychiatric treatment of patients who are at risk for this condition.