Hostname: page-component-78c5997874-g7gxr Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-10T20:48:47.120Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Clinical characteristics of familial versus sporadic alcoholism in a sample of male and female patients

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  16 April 2020

F. Limosin ,
P. Gorwood  and
J. Adès
F. Limosin*
Affiliation:
Service de psychiatrie, Hôpital Louis Mourier, 178 rue des Renouillers, 92701 Colombes cedex, France
P. Gorwood
Affiliation:
Service de psychiatrie, Hôpital Louis Mourier, 178 rue des Renouillers, 92701 Colombes cedex, France
J. Adès
Affiliation:
Service de psychiatrie, Hôpital Louis Mourier, 178 rue des Renouillers, 92701 Colombes cedex, France
*
*Correspondence and reprints. E-mail address: frederic.limosin@wanadoo.fr (F. Limosin).
Get access

Summary

Presence of a family history of alcoholism may predict clinical characteristics in affected subjects, such as an earlier age at onset. More frequent and severe social maladjustment and somatic complications are also regularly cited for familial alcoholism, although subject to many other confusing factors. We analysed the clinical specificities of 79 alcohol-dependent inpatients according to the absence versus presence of family history of alcoholism.

Patients were evaluated for lifetime psychiatric morbidity with the Diagnostic Interview for Genetic Studies (DIGS), for somatic complications with a systematic screening list, and first-degree relatives (N  =  428) were assessed with the Family Inventory Schedule and Criteria (FISC).

Age at onset and social complications were predicting familial versus sporadic alcoholism, even when considering censored data and/or interaction between variables. But differences became non-significant when excluding patients with antisocial personality.

If age at onset effectively appears to be the most informative characteristic for predicting familial versus sporadic alcoholism, it seems that it may be necessary in future studies to systematically take into account antisocial personality diagnosis, because of a probable contamination.

Keywords

alcoholismantisocial personalityfamily historyrisk factors
Type
Original article
Information
European Psychiatry , Volume 16 , Issue 3 , April 2001 , pp. 151 - 156
Copyright
Copyright © Éditions scientifiques et médicales Elsevier SAS 2001

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

American Psychiatric Association. Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders, 3rd ed., rev. (DSM-III-R). Washington DC: APA; 1987.Google Scholar
Andreasen, NC, Endicott, J, Spitzer, RL, Winokur, G.The family history method using diagnostic criteria: reliability and validity. Arch Gen Psychiatry 1977; 34: 1229–1232.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Anthenelli, RM, Smith, TL, Irwin, MR, Schuckit, MD.A comparative study of criteria for subgrouping alcoholics: the primary/secondary diagnostic scheme versus variations of the type 1/type 2 criteria. Am J Psychiatry 1994; 151: 1468–1474.Google Scholar
Babor, TF, Hofmann, M, Delboca, FK, Hesselbrock, V, Meyer, RE, Dolinsky, ZSet al. Types of alcoholics, I. Evidence for an empirically derived typology based on indicators of vulnerability and severity. Arch Gen Psychiatry 1992; 49: 599–608.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Cloninger, CR, Bohman, M, Sigvarson, S.Inheritance of alcohol abuse: cross-fostering analysis of adopted men. Arch Gen Psychiatry 1981; 38: 861–868.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Cook, BL, Winokur, G.A family study of familial positive vs. familial negative alcoholics. J Nerv Ment Dis 1985; 173: 175–178.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Cotton, NS.The familial incidence of alcoholism. A review. J Stud Alcohol 1979; 40: 89–116.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Endicott, J, Andreasen, N, Spitzer, RL.Family history-research diagnostic criteria 3rd. New York: Biometrics Research, New York State Psychiatric Institute; 1978.Google Scholar
Goodwin, DW.Is alcoholism hereditary?. Arch Gen Psychiatry 1971; 25: 545–549.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hesselbrock, VM, Stabenau, JR, Hesselbrock, MN, Meyer, RE, Babor, TF.The nature of alcoholism in patients with different family histories for alcoholism. Progr Neuro-psychopharmacol Biol Psychiatry 1982; 6: 607–614.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Hosmer, DW, Lemeshow, S.Applied logistic regression. New York: John Wiley and Sons; 1980.Google Scholar
Irwin, M, Schuckit, MD, Smith, TL.Clinical importance of age at onset in type 1 and type 2 primary alcoholics. Arch Gen Psychiatry 1990; 47: 320–324.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Lewis, C, Rize, J, Helzer, J.Diagnostic interactions: alcoholism and antisocial personality. J Nerv Ment Dis 1983; 171: 105–113.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Limosin, F, Gorwood, P, Adès, J.Alcoolisme et antécédents familiaux: données actuelles et intérêts cliniques. Presse M 1996; 25: 1550–1554.Google Scholar
Liskow, B, Powell, BJ, Nickel, E, Penick, E.Antisocial alcoholics: are there clinically significant diagnostic subtypes?. J Stud Alcohol 1991; 52: 62–69.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Litt, MD, Babor, TF, Delboca, FK, Kadden, RM, Cooney, NL.Types of alcoholics, II. Application of an empirically derived typology to treatment matching. Arch Gen Psychiatry 1992; 49: 609–614.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
McGuffin, P, Gottesman, II.Genetic influences on normal and abnormal development. In: Rutter, M, Hersov, L, Eds. Child psychiatry: modern approaches 2nd. London: Blackwell; 1984.17–33.Google Scholar
McKenna, T, Pickens, R.Alcoholic children of alcoholics. J Stud Alcohol 1981; 42: 1021–1029.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Mannuzza, S, Fyer, AJ, Endicott, J, Klein, DF.Family informant schedule and criteria (FISC). New York: Anxiety Disorders Clinic, New York State Psychiatric Institute; 1985.Google Scholar
Nurnberger, JI, Blehar, MC, Kaufmann, CA, York-Cooler, C, Simpson, SG, Harkavy-Friedman, Jet al. Diagnostic interview for genetic studies. Rationale, unique features, and training. Arch Gen Psychiatry 1994; 51: 849–859.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Penick, EC, Read, M, Crowley, P, Powell, B.Differentiation of alcoholics by family history. J Stud Alcohol 1978; 39: 1944–1948.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Penick, EC, Powell, BJ, Bingham, SF, Liskow, BI, Miller, NS, Read, MR.A comparative study of familial alcoholism. J Stud Alcohol 1987; 48: 136–146.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Penick, EC, Nickel, EJ, Powell, BJ, Bingham, SF, Liskow, BI.A comparison of familial and nonfamilial male alcoholic patients without a coexisting psychiatric dDisorder. J Stud Alcohol 1990; 51: 443–447.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Schuckit, MA, Rimmer, J, Winokur, G.Alcoholism: the influence of parental illness. Br J Psychiatry 1971; 119: 663–665.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Schuckit, MA.Alcoholic men with no alcoholic first-degree relatives. Am J Psychiatry 1983; 140: 439–443.Google ScholarPubMed
Schuckit, MA.A study of young men with alcoholic close relatives. Am J Psychiatry 1982; 139: 791–794.Google ScholarPubMed
Schuckit, MA.Alcoholism and sociopathy – diagnostic confusion. J Stud Alcohol 1973; 34: 157–164.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Templer, DI, Ruff, CF, Ayers, J.Essential alcoholism and family history of alcoholism. Q J Stud Alcohol 1974; 35: 655–657.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Submit a response

Comments

No Comments have been published for this article.