Skip to main content
PMC home page
British Medical Journal (Clinical Research Ed.) logoLink to British Medical Journal (Clinical Research Ed.)
. 1985 Feb 16;290(6467):501–504. doi: 10.1136/bmj.290.6467.501

Brain shrinkage in chronic alcoholics: a pathological study.

C G Harper, J J Kril, R L Holloway
PMCID: PMC1418027  PMID: 3918649

Abstract

A quantitative neuropathological necropsy study of 22 control and 22 chronic alcoholic subjects showed a statistically significant loss of brain tissue in the chronic alcoholic group. The loss of tissue appeared to be from the white matter of the cerebral hemispheres rather than the cerebral cortex. This may reflect a primary alteration in the composition or structure of the white matter or it may be secondary to loss of nerve cells from the cortex with subsequent degeneration of the axons in the white matter. Further morphometric analyses including cortical neuronal counts will be necessary to clarify this issue.

Full text

PDF
501

Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

  1. Berglund M., Ingvar D. H. Cerebral blood flow and its regional distribution in alcoholism and in Korsakoff's psychosis. J Stud Alcohol. 1976 May;37(5):586–597. doi: 10.15288/jsa.1976.37.586. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  2. Cala L. A., Jones B., Mastaglia F. L., Wiley B. Brain atrophy and intellectual impairment in heavy drinkers--a clinical, psychometric and computerized tomography study. Aust N Z J Med. 1978 Apr;8(2):147–153. doi: 10.1111/j.1445-5994.1978.tb04502.x. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  3. Carlen P. L., Wilkinson D. A., Wortzman G., Holgate R., Cordingley J., Lee M. A., Huszar L., Moddel G., Singh R., Kiraly L. Cerebral atrophy and functional deficits in alcoholics without clinically apparent liver disease. Neurology. 1981 Apr;31(4):377–385. doi: 10.1212/wnl.31.4.377. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  4. Carlen P. L., Wortzman G., Holgate R. C., Wilkinson D. A., Rankin J. C. Reversible cerebral atrophy in recently abstinent chronic alcoholics measured by computed tomography scans. Science. 1978 Jun 2;200(4345):1076–1078. doi: 10.1126/science.653357. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  5. Harper C. G., Blumbergs P. C. Brain weights in alcoholics. J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry. 1982 Sep;45(9):838–840. doi: 10.1136/jnnp.45.9.838. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  6. Harper C., Kril J., Raven D., Jones N. Intracranial cavity volumes: a new method and its potential applications. Neuropathol Appl Neurobiol. 1984 Jan-Feb;10(1):25–32. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2990.1984.tb00337.x. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  7. Harper C. The incidence of Wernicke's encephalopathy in Australia--a neuropathological study of 131 cases. J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry. 1983 Jul;46(7):593–598. doi: 10.1136/jnnp.46.7.593. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  8. Haug H. Stereological methods in the analysis of neuronal parameters in the central nervous system. J Microsc. 1972 Feb;95(1):165–180. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2818.1972.tb03717.x. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  9. Jóhannesson G., Berglund M., Ingvar D. H. Reduction of blood flow in cerebral white matter in alcoholics related to hepatic function. Acta Neurol Scand. 1982 Mar;65(3):190–202. doi: 10.1111/j.1600-0404.1982.tb03077.x. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  10. Lishman W. A. Cerebral disorder in alcoholism: syndromes of impairment. Brain. 1981 Mar;104(Pt 1):1–20. doi: 10.1093/brain/104.1.1. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  11. Miller A. K., Alston R. L., Corsellis J. A. Variation with age in the volumes of grey and white matter in the cerebral hemispheres of man: measurements with an image analyser. Neuropathol Appl Neurobiol. 1980 Mar-Apr;6(2):119–132. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2990.1980.tb00283.x. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  12. Newlin D. B., Golden C. J., Quaife M., Graber B. Effect of alcohol ingestion on regional cerebral blood flow. Int J Neurosci. 1982 Nov;17(3):145–150. doi: 10.3109/00207458208985916. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  13. Noble E. P., Tewari S. Protein and ribonucleic acid metabolism in brains of mice following chronic alcohol consumption. Ann N Y Acad Sci. 1973 Apr 30;215:333–345. doi: 10.1111/j.1749-6632.1973.tb28287.x. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  14. Phillips S. C., Cragg B. G. Chronic consumption of alcohol by adult mice: effect on hippocampal cells and synapses. Exp Neurol. 1983 Apr;80(1):218–226. doi: 10.1016/0014-4886(83)90018-3. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  15. Ron M. A. The alcoholic brain: CT scan and psychological findings. Psychol Med Monogr Suppl. 1983;3:1–33. doi: 10.1017/s0264180100000345. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  16. Sedman G. L., Austin L., Langford C. J. Protein turnover in brain during the development of alcohol dependence. Neurosci Lett. 1982 Jan 22;28(1):93–99. doi: 10.1016/0304-3940(82)90214-2. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  17. Shaw D. M., Frizel D., Camps F. E., White S. Brain electrolytes in depressive and alcoholic suicides. Br J Psychiatry. 1969 Jan;115(518):69–79. doi: 10.1192/bjp.115.518.69. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  18. Tarter R. E. An analysis of cognitive deficits in chronic alcoholics. J Nerv Ment Dis. 1973 Aug;157(2):138–147. doi: 10.1097/00005053-197308000-00006. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  19. Torvik A., Lindboe C. F., Rogde S. Brain lesions in alcoholics. A neuropathological study with clinical correlations. J Neurol Sci. 1982 Nov;56(2-3):233–248. doi: 10.1016/0022-510x(82)90145-9. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Articles from British Medical Journal (Clinical research ed.) are provided here courtesy of BMJ Publishing Group

RESOURCES