Alcohol Dependence: Test and Diagnosis

1st order laboratory parameters – obligatory laboratory tests.

• Small blood count [MCV ↑]
• Gamma-GT (gamma-glutamyl transferase)
• Alanine aminotransferase (ALT, GPT), aspartate aminotransferase (AST, GOT) – only elevated in liver parenchyma damage) [AST > ALT].
• Carbodeficient transferrin (CDT) ↑ (in chronic alcoholism; positive with consumption of one bottle of wine or three bottles of beer per day)* .
• Uric acid

These parameters can be used to make a good diagnostic statement about drinking behavior.

* With abstinence, the values normalize within 10-14 days.

Laboratory parameters 2nd order – depending on the results of the medical history, physical examination, etc. – for differential diagnostic clarification.

• Ethanol (ethanol; marker for acute alcohol abuse).
• Ethyl glucuronide (detection better from urine than from blood; is possible for up to 18 h in serum and up to 36 h in urine)
• Pancreas (pancreas) – elastase in serum or stool.
• Bone marrow – blood count (MCV ↑; anemia (anemia); thrombocytopenia/deficiency of platelets (thrombocytes) in the blood).
• Vitamin deficiency – folic acid; 25-hydroxy vitamin D; 1,25-dihydroxy vitamin D).
• Zieve syndrome – icterus (jaundice); type V hyperlipidemia (lipid metabolism disorder) according to Fredrickson (lipid electrophoresis); hemolytic anemia (haptoglobin ↓).
• Detection of fetal microRNA (in the blood of the pregnant woman) – in case of suspected impending fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS: affects about 2-5% of all children due to their mother’s alcohol consumption during pregnancy).

Detection time of alcohol consumption