ABR as a monitor of detoxification from alcohol V1
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Does the measurement of auditory brainstem responses (ABRs) in people with alcohol dependence syndrome, provide a useful means to document neurological change and monitor the beneficial impact of abstinence?
IRAS ID
156480
Contact name
Christine Johnson
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
Queen Margaret University
Clinicaltrials.gov Identifier
06006862, PhD Matriculation Number
Duration of Study in the UK
1 years, 0 months, 0 days
Research summary
Alcohol has the ability to alter a person’s consciousness, mood or thinking processes and alongside tobacco is one of the world’s most commonly used drugs. Globally, Scotland has the eighth highest consumption of alcohol per person and, in comparison with the rest of the UK and most of Europe, has higher levels of physical or mental harm linked to alcohol. Around 5% of all deaths in Scotland are alcohol related.
Chronic alcohol use increases the risk of damage to organs and immune functions, mostly in the pancreas, liver and brain. We don’t fully understand the mechanisms of alcohol-related brain damage (ARBD) and it is difficult to identify those people who are at risk from ARBD because questionnaires and other self-reported measures tend to underestimate alcohol consumption.
The development of a non-invasive, inexpensive, marker of early stage alcohol-induced brain cell damage could be a useful tool in informing and planning the management of patients at risk of ARBD. The aim of this project is to explore the value of measures of auditory brainstem activity in documenting alcohol dependence syndrome and in monitoring change, following a period of abstinence. The Auditory Brainstem Response (ABR) is an objective measure that has been used to assess the integrity of the brainstem. It measures changes in voltage recorded from the scalp in response to hearing simple sound stimuli. These changes in voltage represent the underlying response of the nerves ‘firing’ as the information about the sound is passed up the brainstem. This tool therefore potentially offers a quick and economic test of neural function that may be informative in cataloguing changes in brainstem function associated with an alcohol use disorder (AUD).REC name
Wales REC 7
REC reference
15/WA/0019
Date of REC Opinion
15 Jan 2015
REC opinion
Favourable Opinion