Static ataxia as a psychobiological marker for alcoholism

Sons and daughters of male alcoholics were compared with the sons and daughters of controls on two measures of static ataxia. Increased sway was seen in the children of the alcoholic fathers who had an average of 3.7 first- and second-degree relatives meeting criteria for alcoholism. The possibility that static ataxia may be a psychobiological marker for the more genetically mediated variant of alcoholism is discussed.