Am J Psychiatry 1988; 145:1391-1395
Copyright © 1988 by American Psychiatric Association
Alcohol consumption, ACTH level, and family history of alcoholism
MA Schuckit, SC Risch and EO Gold
School of Medicine, University of California, San Diego.
Plasma levels of ACTH were evaluated in 18 sons of alcoholics and 18 sons
of nonalcoholics before and after they consumed placebo, 0.75 ml/kg of
ethanol, and 1.1 ml/kg of ethanol. The analyses revealed significant
changes in ACTH levels over time, an effect of ethanol on ACTH overall, and
significantly lower ACTH levels in the sons of alcoholics than in the
control subjects following the high-dose ethanol challenge. The data
corroborate the earlier finding that sons of alcoholics have less intense
responses to ethanol and are consistent with the conclusion that changes in
cortisol level associated with drinking include a pituitary response as
well as effects on the adrenal glands.
