BRAIN ATROPHY AND COGNITIVE FUNCTION IN OLDER ABSTINENT ALCOHOLIC MEN

We used computer-aided magnetic resonance image analysis and an age-no rmed battery of neuropsychological tests to measure brain atrophy and cognitive function in 14 older abstinent alcoholic men and 11 older co ntrols in the expectation that these subject groups would show the gre atest and most persistent cerebral effects consequent to chronic alcoh olism. The abstinent alcoholics exhibited cognitive impairments (prima rily in memory and visual-spatial-motor skills) compared with the cont rols. In contrast, we found no difference in global cerebral atrophy b etween the groups, although two alcoholics had extensive atrophy compa red with all other subjects. However, there was a stronger association between age and ventricular dilation in the alcoholic sample compared with controls. We conclude that a substrate other than magnetic reson ance imaging-detectable global atrophy must underlie the persistent co gnitive impairments evident in the sampled alcoholics, Furthermore, if there are global atrophic changes in the brain associated with chroni c alcoholism, these effects are not ubiquitous and/or may be reversibl e in most patients with sufficient abstinence.