The cognitive impairment and recovery associated with chronic alcohol abuse and subsequent abstinence is well understood. However the recovery profile following heavy episodic or ‘binge’ use, which is common amongst some Australian Aboriginal users, has not been thoroughly investigated and no empirical studies have examined chronic use in this population.
To identify and compare cognitive impairment and recovery associated with chronic and episodic alcohol use among Aboriginal Australians.
Residential alcohol treatment programs in northern Australia.
Forty chronic alcohol users, 24 episodic users and 41 healthy controls (M age = 34.24; SD = 9.73).
Cognitive assessments of visual motor, attention, memory, learning and executive functions at baseline (start of treatment), then 4 weeks and 8 weeks later. Reassessment of 31% of participants an average of 11 months later (SD = 4.4) comparing those who remained abstinent (n = 5), those who relapsed (n = 11) and healthy controls (n = 19).
At baseline, chronic and episodic alcohol users showed impaired visual motor, learning, memory and executive functions. With the exception of visual motor impairment, all deficits had improved to normal levels within 4 weeks. Visual motor deficits had normalised within 11 months. Performances did not differ at any time between chronic and episodic alcohol groups.
Episodic drinking was associated with similar patterns of impairment and recovery as chronic alcohol use. Most cognitive deficits recovered within the first month of abstinence while persisting visual motor problems recovered within one year.
Request Reprint E-Mail: Sheree.Cairney@menzies.edu.au
