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Brain development in heavy-drinking adolescents.

Lindsay M Squeglia1, Susan F Tapert1, Edith V Sullivan1

  • 1From the VA San Diego Healthcare System, La Jolla, Calif.; the Department of Psychiatry, University of California San Diego, La Jolla; the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston; the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford; and the Neuroscience Program, SRI International, Menlo Park, Calif.

The American Journal of Psychiatry
|May 19, 2015
PubMed
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Heavy alcohol use in adolescence accelerates gray matter reduction and slows white matter growth, impacting brain development. These findings highlight the critical need for caution regarding adolescent alcohol consumption.

Area of Science:

  • Neuroscience
  • Developmental Neuroscience
  • Addiction Research

Background:

  • Adolescent heavy alcohol use poses risks to brain development.
  • Previous studies had smaller sample sizes and shorter follow-up periods.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the impact of heavy alcohol use on adolescent brain morphometry trajectories.
  • To compare brain development in heavy-drinking adolescents versus non-drinkers.
  • To examine sex differences in alcohol-related brain development.

Main Methods:

  • Longitudinal MRI scans of 134 adolescents (ages 12-24) over up to 8 years.
  • Tracking gray and white matter volume changes in heavy drinkers (n=75) and non-drinkers (n=59).
  • Utilizing atlas-based parcellation and linear mixed-effects models.

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Main Results:

  • Heavy drinking adolescents exhibited accelerated gray matter reduction in frontal and temporal regions.
  • Attenuated white matter growth was observed in the corpus callosum and pons.
  • These effects persisted even when accounting for other drug use, with similar patterns in males and females.

Conclusions:

  • Heavy alcohol use during adolescence is linked to accelerated cortical gray matter decline.
  • Adolescent heavy drinking is associated with impaired white matter development.
  • Findings underscore the importance of preventing heavy alcohol use in adolescents to protect brain development.