[Alcohol-associated mortality in Russia (based on the materials for the period from 2011 till 2016)]. / Alkogol'-assotsiirovannaia smertnost' v Rossii (po materialam 2011-2016 gg.).

The objective of the present study was to evaluate the frequency of alcoholic drunkenness documented during forensic medical expertises (investigations) of the corpses carried out in this country throughout the period from 2011 till 2016. The investigations were conducted with the use of medical statistics methods by calculating the fractional difference, dynamics, and rates of detection of the cases of alcoholic intoxication depending on the cause of death. The study has demonstrated the high frequency of the cases of alcoholic drunkenness revealed during forensic medical expertises (investigations) of the corpses that amounted to 30.5% [15, 16]. The total number of the corpses examined in 2016 was 8.6% higher than in 2011. The frequency of the documented cases of alcoholic drunkenness during the same period decreased by 19.7%. The frequency of the documented cases of alcoholic drunkenness in the cases of violent death was 2.8 times that in the cases of death from various diseases (52.8 and 19.0% respectively). The enhanced frequency of alcoholic drunkenness in relation to the number of the conducted forensic medical expertises was documented in the cases of death by drowning and from hypothermia whereas the lowest frequency of alcoholic intoxication was recorded for the corpses of the people who had died from malignant tumours and diseases of the nervous system. Various regions of Russia differed in terms of the frequency of alcoholic drunkenness recorded among the recently deceased people.

Acidentes de trânsito e a frequência dos exames de alcoolemia com vítimas fatais na cidade do Rio de Janeiro / Traffic accidents with fatal victims and alcohol consumption in Rio de Janeiro City / Accidentes de tránsito y la frecuencia de los exámenes de alcoholemia con víctimas fatales en la ciudad del Rio de Janeiro

Estudo epidemiológico descritivo. O objetivo foi analisar os óbitos por acidentes de trânsito, registrados no Instituto Médico Legal (IML), na cidade do Rio de Janeiro, segundo a frequência de realização dos exames sobre os níveis de alcoolemia. Foram analisados 533 prontuários, no período de seis meses, que corresponderam a 12,3% do total de mortes registradas. Evidenciou-se que o exame de alcoolemia foi prioritariamente realizado nas vítimas que vieram de via pública e deram entrada no IML nas primeiras 12 horas após o acidente. A realização dos testes de alcoolemia teve significativa relação com o tempo decorrido entre o acidente e o óbito. Identificou-se, contudo, grande perda de oportunidade de realização do exame para um grande número de vítimas vindas diretamente de via pública nas primeiras 12 horas do acidente (50,1%), colaborando para uma subnotificação dos verdadeiros números de álcool no trânsito.

Mortalidade nos acidentes de trânsito na cidade do Rio de Janeiro relacionada ao uso e abuso de bebidas alcoólicas / Prevalence of alcoholemy in fatal victims of traffic accidents in the city of Rio de Janeiro

Os acidentes de trânsito representam relevante papel no conjunto das principais causas de morbimortalidade no mundo contemporâneo. O presente estudo teve como objetivo descrever, a mortalidade decorrente de acidentes de trânsito, registrados no IML, na cidade do Rio de Janeiro, e investigar a sua relação com a alcoolemia apresentada nas vítmas. O estudo foi epidemiológico, exploratório e descritivo...

The effects of smoking and drinking on cardiovascular disease and risk factors.

Research on how tobacco and alcohol use interact to influence risk for cardiovascular disease is limited. Alcohol consumption of three or more drinks per day and cigarette smoking share similar, and probably additive, effects on some forms of cardiovascular disease. There is relatively little evidence, however, that the effets are worse when smoking and drinking occur together than would be expected from their independent effects. In most cases, moderate drinking does not share these risks and even has opposite effects of cigarette smoking on some risk factors. Ongoing public health efforts to minimize tobacco use and harmful drinking should result in clear and important gains to the nation's cardiovascular well-being.

Hospital morbidity of alcohol use disorders in the center of France.

BACKGROUND: The Auvergne region of central France has the third highest mortality rate in the country for alcohol-related disorders and the highest level of alcohol consumption among young people. METHODS: An exhaustive cross-sectional study of regional hospital morbidity related to alcohol was undertaken on a single day in May 1998, including 9,552 hospital beds. All inpatients age 16 and older in the Departments of Medicine, Surgery, Obstetrics and Gynecology, Psychiatry, and Medium-Stay Services were studied. The aim was to define alcohol-related behavior patterns (by using the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders [DSM-IV] criteria of abuse and dependence and the CAGE questionnaire) and to measure the proportion of nonsomatic alcohol-related care dispensed in hospital. RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS: The prevalence of alcohol use disorders in all wards was 20%. Half of these patients were alcohol dependent, a quarter were diagnosed as alcohol abusers, and a quarter had an alcohol-related problem that was not identified during the stay. Alcohol use disorders were more common in male inpatients (34% vs. 8% in female inpatients) and in certain age groups. One male subject in two and one female subject in five between 34 and 45 years had an alcohol-related problem. Almost 25% of male inpatients studied between the ages of 16 and 20 years had an alcohol-related problem, but only half had been diagnosed previously. Hospital care for alcohol-related health problems was seriously inadequate. On average, 38% of patients diagnosed with an alcohol use disorder received relevant nonsomatic alcohol care, of which 13% were alcohol abusers and 50% were alcohol-dependent patients. SIGNIFICANCE: This exhaustive study demonstrates the degree of alcohol-related morbidity among hospitalized patients, which is particularly high in men, in the Auvergne region of France. The study emphasizes the lack of diagnosis, particularly for the young, and the apparent deficiencies in the hospital management of these patients.