pathological lesions that occur in the body as a result of alcohol consumption over long periods of time.
Here are some definitions of "alcoholism", which will help us determine the extent of this pathology:
- Keller (1960): "Chronic illness as evidenced by the habit of drinking repeatedly so that it appears that the drinker is harmed their health and social and economic functioning.
- Jellineck (1960): "Any use of alcoholic beverages that causes any harm to the individual, to society or both."
- WHO (1952): "Alcoholics are those excessive drinkers whose dependence on alcohol has reached such a degree that present significant interference with mental disorders or mental or physical health, their interpersonal relationships and social functioning economic, or have clear signs the trend towards such symptoms. It is for this reason that they require treatment. "
- The diagnostic manual (DSM-III-R, DSM-IV, ICD-10): Distinguish between drinking and abusing alcohol dependent drinker. This is based on specific criteria.
The World Health Organization believes that those excessive drinkers are alcoholics, whose dependence on alcohol has caused serious damage to the mental or physical health, functioning social, and economical, requiring these people treatment.
Thus, alcoholism is caused by overeating, habitual alcohol or intermittently, for its continued use does occur dependent on the person consuming it, either physical or psychological in nature and is manifested clinically by physical consequences psychological or social. It is a chronic progressive disease.
Alcoholism is one of the most serious diseases that a person can suffer, and pathology of the most important of Medicine.
There are also in it each and every one of the features of any disease, as there is a causative agent (alcohol), the mechanism by which the agent acts or causes (learning, tolerance and dependence), impaired organ function (poisoning and malnutrition due to displacement of essential substances for nutrition, particularly vitamins), symptomatology (Clinic: with impaired physical and mental health. Exploration: Using analytical, radiology, etc..), an evolutionary process (towards addiction and death, or toward rehabilitation through abstinence) and epidemiology (exists throughout recorded history occurring in the population and now we are in an endemic situation).
Moreover, the action against the disease alcoholic / a is identical to that carried out in general terms for any illness:
- A diagnosis.
- A prognosis.
- A treatment: detoxification, detoxification and treatment of appetite.
- A rehabilitation.
- A maturational reorganization of the personality through psychotherapy, mainly in groups.
- An individual's social reintegration.
Edward and Gross (1976) listed the following symptoms to conceptualize, what they called "alcohol dependency syndrome '
1. Psychobiological symptoms: tolerance, withdrawal symptoms and restoration of the syndrome after drinking again.
2. Behavioral symptoms: Represented by a decrease in drinking patterns.
3. Subjective symptoms or equivalent to 'psychological dependence': Difficulty controlling drinking, and the desire to drink alcohol becomes the focus of the subject's life.
The definition of alcoholism (DSM54-III-R, DSM-IV and ICD-APA55 WHO 1056) is determined by the distinction between "abuse" and "dependency" of alcohol.