NEUROCHEMICAL CORRELATES OF SYMPATHETIC ACTIVATION DURING SEVERE ALCOHOL-WITHDRAWAL

Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) was obtained from 17 patients during acute a lcohol withdrawal. Eight of these 17 patients had a second lumbar punc ture a mean of 11.9 +/- 8.1 (SD) days later, when the clinical signs o f alcohol withdrawal had subsided. CSF 3-methoxy-4-hydroxyphenylglycol concentrations declined significantly (p < 0.05) during the course of alcohol withdrawal from 52.0 +/- 22.1 (SD) to 39.6 +/- 12.6 pM/ml. In early withdrawal, there was a significant positive correlation betwee n CSF norepinephrine (NE) and corticotropin releasing hormone (CRH) co ncentrations (r = 0.95, p < 0.0001). Both NE and CRH concentrations co rrelated positively with diastolic blood pressure (r = 0.88, p < 0.001 and r = 0.62, p < 0.05, respectively). In all samples, CSF 5-hydroxyi ndole acetic acid concentrations correlated positively with CSF-homova nillic acid concentrations (r = 0.83, p < 0.001). These findings indic ate significant perturbations of the noradrenergic neuronal system and a change in CRH-NE interactions during acute alcohol withdrawal.