Recovery from alcoholism in cirrhotic patients: a study of 45 cases

In order to determine factors that influenced their recovery from alcoholism, 45 men who attended a liver clinic were studied, employing a detailed questionnaire. All had shown classic signs of cirrhosis, and 84 percent were in frank hepatic failure at the time of hospitalization. In general, they were married, blue-collar workers who drank, on average, for 27 years and either abstained or sharply curtailed their alcohol intake for 3.7 years (range one to 11 yrs) following which their hepatic function improved steadily. They reported that severe medical illness was a critical factor in the decision to stop drinking (87 percent) and that continued medical care was very helpful in their recovery from alcoholism (73 percent). Formal alcoholism treatment seldom was employed. Most stated that they "did it on their own." Improvement in health, in psychologic state, in marital and social relations reinforced sobriety. The results indicate the potential impact of medical illness on the decision to stop drinking and the need to study further the factors that promote recovery from alcoholism in medical settings.