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Saturday, April 21, 2007

Chronic Smoking Is Associated With Differential Neurocognitive Recovery in Abstinent Alcoholic Patients: A Preliminary Investigation

 Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research
(OnlineEarly Articles). 19 April 2007

Approximately 50 to 90% of individuals in North America seeking treatment for alcoholism are chronic smokers. A growing body of evidence suggests that chronic cigarette smokers show a pattern of neurocognitive dysfunction similar to that observed in alcoholic patients.

However, previous studies investigating neurocognitive recovery in abstinent alcoholic patients did not specifically consider the potential effects of chronic cigarette smoking.

These preliminary results suggest that chronic smoking may modulate neurocognitive recovery in abstinent alcoholic patients. More generally, chronic smoking may impact neurocognition in other conditions where is it a prevalent behavior.

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REPRINT REQUEST E-MAIL: timothy.durazzo@ucsf.edu

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