LITTLE FALLS, N.J., July 23 -- Trauma patients should have their blood alcohol levels checked, even if they've denied drinking heavily, researchers said. An elevated blood alcohol level was significantly associated with a higher rate of complications in adults treated at a single trauma center, according to Michael Fleming, MD, MPH, of the University of Wisconsin in Madison, and colleagues wrote online in Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research.
Testing blood alcohol levels could also identify high-risk patients who may need counseling in addition to medical treatment, they said.
And in patients who have elevated levels, "trauma teams may want to monitor [them] closely for alcohol withdrawal and start treatment with benzodiazepines earlier than in patients with a negative blood alcohol level," the researchers said.
Not only can heavy drinking lead directly to trauma, but it can also make assessment and patient care more challenging, according to Dr. Fleming and his colleagues, who quoted a study showing that 20% to 37% of trauma cases were alcohol-related.
