Moderate Alcohol Levels May Protect Brain After Trauma

But high blood levels are deadly, new study finds.

By Ed Edelson
HealthDay Reporter
Monday, December 18, 2006; 12:00 AM

Copyright © 2006 ScoutNews, LLC. All rights reserved.

MONDAY, Dec. 18 (HealthDay News) -- Low to moderate blood alcohol levels improve the chance of survival for people brought into emergency rooms with traumatic brain injuries, a Canadian study finds.

The death rate among the 1,158 patients in the study was 24 percent lower for those with moderate blood alcohol levels than those with no alcohol in their blood. But the death rate for those with high levels was 73 percent higher than for those with no blood alcohol.

While the study was not designed to determine the cause of the protective effect, animal trials point to an answer, said study lead author Dr. Homer C. N. Tien, a staff surgeon at the University of Toronto Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre.

"When the brain is injured, a lot of the damage is secondary, occurring after the accident," Tien said. "Animal studies have suggested that for a variety of reasons, alcohol can help prevent that secondary brain injury."

Of the brain-injury patients in the study, 740 had no alcohol in their blood. Another 315 had low to moderate blood alcohol levels, up to 230 milligrams per deciliter of blood, while 103 had levels of 230 or higher.

There were 403 deaths in the hospital. Of those with low to moderate blood alcohol readings, 27.9 percent died, compared to a 36.3 percent death rate for those with no blood alcohol. Nearly half of the people with the highest blood alcohol readings -- 44.7 percent -- died, the researchers said.

The reduced risk of death associated with moderate alcohol levels was still present when the researchers adjusted for other factors, such as the severity of the injuries and blood transfusions.

The study is in the December issue of the Archives of Surgery.

The finding could someday lead to an alcohol-based treatment to limit brain damage from severe head injuries, Tien said, but a lot of work would have to be done to make that possible. "If this were tested very vigorously and found to have a benefit, it could theoretically be used for brain injuries," he said.