The risk factors of alcohol overdose are binge drinking, a history of alcohol use disorder, drinking on an empty stomach, and combining alcohol with other depressants. Additionally, factors like age, gender, body weight, and underlying health conditions significantly increase the risk of alcohol poisoning. Other terms for alcohol overdose include ethanol poisoning, acute alcohol toxicity, and alcohol intoxication emergency. These conditions are all marked by dangerously high BAC levels that impair the central nervous system and depress normal physiological responses like the gag reflex, temperature control, and breathing.
Critical Care
In alcohol-naïve people, a BAC of 300 to 400 mg/dL (65.1 to 86.8 mmol/L) often causes unconsciousness, and a BAC ≥ 400 mg/dL (86.8 mmol/L) may be fatal. Sudden death due to respiratory depression or arrhythmias may occur, especially when large quantities are drunk rapidly. A person with an alcohol use disorder is also at risk of drinking too much and getting alcohol poisoning. A person with alcohol poisoning may vomit, which can be especially dangerous if they are laying down or are unaccompanied. There is a risk that a person with alcohol poisoning could choke on their own vomit because their gag reflexes can be inhibited by drinking too much.
- This is because alcohol’s main effect as a depressant is slowing down or completely blocking certain nerve signals from reaching the brain, which is part of how drinking relaxes you.
- It’s no surprise that alcohol is a toxin, which in small amounts, the liver can process.
- Recognizing the signs—such as confusion, vomiting, seizures, slow breathing, and unconsciousness can save lives.
- IV hydration is needed for hypotension or evidence of volume depletion but does not significantly enhance ethanol clearance.
- If you or a loved one is struggling with alcohol abuse, GateHouse Treatment provides compassionate, individualized care designed to meet the unique needs of each person.
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Young children who drink alcohol are at significant risk of hypoglycemia because alcohol impairs alcohol overdose gluconeogenesis and their smaller stores of glycogen are rapidly depleted. Women may be more sensitive than men, even on a per-weight basis, because their gastric (first-pass) metabolism of alcohol is less due to lower activity of alcohol dehydrogenase in the gastric mucosa. The physical dependence accompanying tolerance is profound, and alcohol withdrawal has potentially fatal adverse effects.
What Causes an Alcohol Overdose
- Someone with a smaller body may experience the effects of alcohol more rapidly than someone with a larger body.
- According to the World Health Organization (WHO), alcohol-related liver disease contributes to more than 2 million deaths globally each year.
- When alcohol overdose is left untreated, it leads to severe and potentially fatal complications.
- Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition.
Severe drug-resistant DT can be treated with a continuous infusion of lorazepam, diazepam, midazolam, propofol, or dexmedetomidine, usually with concomitant mechanical ventilation. Physical restraints should be avoided if possible to Halfway house minimize additional agitation, but patients must not be allowed to escape, remove IVs, or otherwise endanger themselves. Intravascular volume must be maintained with IV fluids, and thiamin must be given promptly. One serving of alcohol (one 12-oz can of beer, one 6-oz glass of wine, or 1.5 oz of distilled liquor) contains 10 to 15 g of ethanol. Alcohol is absorbed into the blood mainly from the small bowel, although some is absorbed from the stomach. Alcohol accumulates in blood because absorption is more rapid than oxidation and elimination.
Steps to Take If Someone Shows Signs of Alcohol Poisoning
Even when someone stops drinking, blood alcohol concentration (BAC) can continue to rise for minutes, resulting in worsening symptoms. If you think that someone you’re with may be experiencing alcohol poisoning, it’s crucial to take immediate action. In a hospital setting, treatment of alcohol poisoning usually involves treating the symptoms it causes. Alcohol poisoning cannot be easily reversed, so the alcohol is typically allowed to be metabolized by the body.
It’s a situation that can quickly turn life-threatening, whether it affects you or someone you care about. What makes alcohol overdose especially frightening is how easily the signs can be mistaken for something less serious—until it’s too late. Alcohol poisoning occurs when you drink so much that the alcohol in your blood affects your brain’s ability to sustain life. You get alcohol poisoning by drinking a large amount of alcohol at one time or by drinking alcohol while your body’s metabolism is slow to process the alcohol you do drink. Medications are typically only used to treat symptoms that develop because of alcohol poisoning and are not generally used to treat alcohol poisoning itself.