T. Wetterling et al., DOES CARBOHYDRATE-DEFICIENT TRANSFERRIN PREDICT THE SEVERITY OF ALCOHOL-WITHDRAWAL SYNDROME, Alcoholism, clinical and experimental research, 22(5), 1998, pp. 1053-1056
Alcohol withdrawal often causes severe complications. However, many ad
dicts deny any abuse. Thus, the diagnosis of alcohol abuse frequently
becomes difficult. Laboratory parameters are often used to support the
diagnosis of alcohol abuse. Furthermore, laboratory parameters should
facilitate the prediction of the severity of alcohol withdrawal syndr
ome (AWS). The most promising laboratory parameter indicating a recent
elevated alcohol consumption is carbohydrate-deficient transferrin (C
DT). The aim of this study was to examine whether the measurement of C
DT at admission can indicate a higher risk for the development of a co
mplicated AWS. The severity of AWS was assessed by the AWS scale, cons
isting of two subscales for somatic and mental symptoms. CDT was measu
red by different methods (radioimmunoassay and HPLC). The radioimmunoa
ssay for CDT (CDTect) yielded the best prediction. Our results showed
a weak correlation between CDTect and the severity of AWS. However, th
ere were great gender differences. In men, CDTect had the highest posi
tive predictive value for a severe AWS (86.7%), whereas in women mean
corpuscular volume was the best predictor (77.8%). However, the sensit
ivity of ODTect in men (25.5%), as well as mean corpuscular volume in
females (29.2%), was too low for a screening test in a general hospita
l.