Alcohol-dependent patients who received the medication topiramate had fewer heavy drinking days, fewer drinks per day and more days of continuous abstinence than those who received placebo, according to a study in the October 10 issue of JAMA.

The neurotransmitter dopamine is believed to influence the development and/or maintenance of alcoholism.

Mixing energy drinks with alcohol appears to be popular among Italian university students

Binge drinking has traditionally been more common in Anglo-Saxon and northern European countries than Mediterranean countries.

Computerized craniofacial anthropometry can help identify patients with fetal alcohol syndrome

New research in primates suggests that infants and children who carry a certain gene variant may be more vulnerable to the ill effects of fetal alcohol exposure.

Naltrexone is one of four oral medications approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the treatment of alcoholism. A recent large multicenter research study of alcohol dependence supported by the National Institute of Alcoholism and Alcohol Abuse (NIAAA), the COMBINE Study, suggested that naltrexone produced a modest but significant benefit but another FDA-approved medication, acamprosate, was ineffective.

As schools reopen around the country, a new study finds that parents and teachers should pay attention to alcohol prevention starting as early as fourth grade.

Heavy alcohol use can lead to structural and functional changes in the brain.
New findings show that even when structural damage may not be apparent, brain activation can still be reduced.
Researchers refer to this alcohol-induced damage as “latent lesions.”

Previous brain-imaging studies have suggested cognitive deficits in alcoholic patients. New findings indicate that alcoholic patients show emotional processing deficits as well.

Cirrhosis of the liver is one of the most common and serious medical complications linked to alcoholism. Heavy alcohol use can also cause brain damage.
Cirrhotic alcoholics appear to have even more impaired brain function than non-cirrhotic alcoholics.

A bad neighbourhood is known to contribute to the development and maintenance of an individual’s alcohol use and alcohol-related problems.