title: Risk assessment in patients with acute alcohol intoxication.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Patients with acute alcohol intoxication present a serious and still growing problem for pre- and intra-hospital emergency services. Data on the clinical risk assessment of alcohol-intoxicated patients are sparse. The aim of the present work was, therefore, to collect and assess relevant risk parameters.
  
  
  METHODS
  At the Mannheim University Hospital, the medical records of 844 alcohol-intoxicated Emergency Department patients were retrospectively studied and evaluated.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The patients with alcohol intoxications were predominantly males with an average age of 45 years. Mean blood alcohol concentration was 0.28%. The rate of haemodynamic, respiratory or metabolic complications in these patients was low. In 43% of cases, there was moderately to severely impaired consciousness. About half of the patients were treated on an outpatient basis.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our data demonstrate a low clinical risk for alcohol-intoxicated patients. Nevertheless, it is necessary to provide a defined monitoring standard in order to also be prepared for the few potential complications of alcohol intoxication and the possible differential diagnoses of impaired consciousness.
authors.affiliation: Emergency Department, University Medical Centre, Medical Faculty Mannheim, Heidelberg University, Mannheim, Germany joachim.gruettner@umm.de.
authors.forename: Joachim
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Gruettner
authors.affiliation: Emergency Department, University Medical Centre, Medical Faculty Mannheim, Heidelberg University, Mannheim, Germany.
authors.forename: Thomas
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Walter
authors.affiliation: First Department of Medicine, University Medical Centre, Medical Faculty Mannheim, Heidelberg University, Mannheim, Germany.
authors.forename: Siegfried
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Lang
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Radiology and Nuclear Medicine, University Medical Centre, Medical Faculty Mannheim, Heidelberg University, Mannheim, Germany.
authors.forename: Miriam
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Reichert
authors.affiliation: Gastrocentrum, Karolinska University Hospital, Stockholm, Sweden.
authors.forename: Stephan
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Haas
mesh_terms: D000208:Acute Disease; D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000435:Alcoholic Intoxication / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000628:therapy; D019468:Disease Management; D005260:Female; D015600:Glasgow Coma Scale; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D018570:Risk Assessment; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Alcohol intoxication; Glasgow coma scale; electrolytes; emergency department; glucose; risk assessment