Mental or Behavioral Dysfunction
alcoholism
al·co·hol·ism [ al-kuh-haw-lih-zum ]
Subclass of:
Alcohol Related Disorders
Also called:
Alcohol dependence
Definitions related to alcoholic intoxication, chronic:
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(alcoholism) A primary, chronic disease with genetic, psychosocial, and environmental factors influencing its development and manifestations. The disease is often progressive and fatal. It is characterized by impaired control over drinking, preoccupation with the drug alcohol, use of alcohol despite adverse consequences, and distortions in thinking, most notably denial. Each of these symptoms may be continuous or periodic. (Morse & Flavin for the Joint Commission of the National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence and the American Society of Addiction Medicine to Study the Definition and Criteria for the Diagnosis of Alcoholism: in JAMA 1992;268:1012-4)NLM Medical Subject HeadingsU.S. National Library of Medicine, 2021
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(alcoholism) An addictive behavior defined as drinking excessive amounts of alcohol over a long period of time, having difficulty reducing the amount of alcohol consumed, strongly desiring alcohol and experiencing withdrawal symptoms when not drinking alcohol.Human Phenotype Ontology (HPO)The Human Phenotype Ontology Project, 2021
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(alcoholism) Another term for alcohol dependence: A chronic, progressive disease characterized by excessive and often compulsive drinking, impaired control over drinking, use of alcohol despite adverse consequences, and withdrawal symptoms when alcohol use is discontinued. Also known as alcoholism.Harvard Dictionary of Health TermsHarvard Medical Publishing, 2011
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(dipsomania) Compulsion to drink alcoholic beverages.Sadock's Comprehensive Glossary of Psychiatry and PsychologyBJ Sadock Titles Press, 2012
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(alcohol dependence) A chronic disease in which a person craves drinks that contain alcohol and is unable to control his or her drinking. A person with this disease also needs to drink greater amounts to get the same effect and has withdrawal symptoms after stopping alcohol use. Alcoholism affects physical and mental health, and can cause problems with family, friends, and work.NCI Dictionary of Cancer TermsU.S. National Cancer Institute, 2021
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(alcohol dependence) Physical and psychological dependence on alcohol.NCI ThesaurusU.S. National Cancer Institute, 2021
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(alcoholism/alcohol abuse) A disorder characterized by a pathological pattern of alcohol use that causes a serious impairment in social or occupational functioning.CRISP ThesaurusNational Institutes of Health, 2006
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Alcohol use disorder is a diagnosis made when an individual has severe problems related to drinking alcohol. Alcohol use disorder can cause major health, social, and economic problems, and can endanger affected individuals and others through behaviors prompted by impaired decision-making and lowered inhibitions, such as aggression, unprotected sex, or driving while intoxicated. Alcohol use disorder is a broad diagnosis that encompasses several commonly used terms describing problems with drinking. It includes alcoholism, also called alcohol addiction, which is a long-lasting (chronic) condition characterized by a powerful, compulsive urge to drink alcohol and the inability to stop drinking after starting. In addition to alcoholism, alcohol use disorder includes alcohol abuse, which involves problem drinking without addiction. Habitual excessive use of alcohol changes the chemistry of the brain and leads to tolerance, which means that over time the amount of alcohol ingested needs to be increased to achieve the same effect. Long-term excessive use of alcohol may also produce dependence, which means that when people stop drinking, they have physical and psychological symptoms of withdrawal, such as sleep problems, irritability, jumpiness, shakiness, restlessness, headache, nausea, sweating, anxiety, and depression. In severe cases, agitation, fever, seizures, and hallucinations can occur; this pattern of severe withdrawal symptoms is called delirium tremens. The...MedlinePlus GeneticsU.S. National Library of Medicine, 2021
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Alcoholism is common, serious, and expensive. Physicians encounter alcohol-related cirrhosis, cardiomyopathy, pancreatitis, and gastrointestinal bleeding, as well as intoxication and alcohol addiction, on a daily basis.WebMD, 2019
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Alcoholism, excessive and repetitive drinking of alcoholic beverages to the extent that the drinker repeatedly is harmed or harms others. The harm may be physical or mental; it may also be social, legal, or economic. Because such use is usually considered to be compulsive and under markedly...Encyclopedia Britannica, Inc., 2020
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