Chronic Alcoholism

Chronic Alcoholism Requires Ongoing Treatment Like Other Diseases

Drug addiction and alcohol addiction are comparable to other chronic illnesses like diabetes, asthma, and hypertension -- and should be treated as such -- according to an article published in the Journal of the American Medical Association.

Authors Thomas McLellan, Ph.D., and Herbert D. Kleber, M.D., conducted a literature review of those illnesses that revealed underlying similarities between drug addiction, alcoholism and chronic diseases.

The researchers point out that drug addiction is typically treated as if it is an acute condition.

Altering perceptions to think of alcoholism and drug addiction as chronic illnesses may change the way they are treated and insured.

The researchers found that drug and alcohol addiction share many of the characteristics of other chronic illnesses. In the area of genetics, for example, studies of identical and fraternal twins have found heredity-connection estimates of .25 to .50 for hypertension; .80 for type 2 and .30 for type 1 diabetes; and .36 to .70 for asthma.

Genetic estimates for addictions are similar, ranging from .34 for heroin dependence, .55 for alcoholism, .52 for marijuana dependence, and .61 for dependence on cigarettes.

Typically, both medical professionals and the general public view drug abuse as voluntary activities. That people choose to use drugs seems to set drug and alcohol addiction apart from other chronic illnesses.

Yet, there are many chronic illnesses in which voluntary choice affects initiation and maintenance of disease. Salt sensitivity, obesity, stress level, and physical inactivity, all within voluntary control, are important factors in the development of hypertension.

Drug addiction and alcoholism also resembles other chronic illnesses in regard to treatment response. The course that chronic alcoholism or drug addiction takes if left untreated is an important issue in this regard.

Studies comparing treated and untreated populations of addicts have typically shown that those with untreated addictions do not stop using or get better.

At this time there is no reliable "cure" for chronic alcoholism or drug addiction. Typically, alcoholics and drug addicts who remain in addiction treatment and have ongoing treatment follow-up have superior outcomes compared with those who do not.

This article was written by Jonathan Huttner, a principal with Lakeview Health Systems, which operates rehab programs with components for dual diagnosis treatment and GLBT. For more information, visit LakeviewHealth.com.

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