Blunted growth hormone response is associated with early relapse in alcohol-dependent patients

Growth hormone (GH) secretion, stimulated by the dopamine D1 and D2 receptor agonist apomorphine, was assessed in 55 alcohol-dependent patients before detoxification (on the day of admittance to hospital) and after 7 days of treatment on the ward (day 8). Patients who relapsed early (i.e., within 3 months after detoxification) showed significantly blunted GH secretion before detoxification, compared with both healthy controls and patients who abstained for 6 months. Among early relapsing patients, GH secretion was blunted whether or not patients were acutely intoxicated on the day of admittance to hospital. However, for patients who abstained during observation, a blunting effect of acute ethanol consumption on GH secretion was demonstrated. On day 8, a trend toward blunted GH secretion was found in early relapsing patients only when GH response over infusion time was assessed. Therefore, GH blunting, and no other variable indicating the clinical course of the disease, was associated with early relapse in alcohol-dependent patients. These findings are evidence of reduced dopamine receptor function in a subgroup of early relapsing alcohol-dependent patients during chronic intoxication.