Alcohol's Effect on Trauma Outcomes

doi:10.1001/jama.1993.03510010099038

Alcohol's Effect on Trauma Outcomes

A Reappraisal of Conventional Wisdom

Carl A. Soderstrom, MD;
Gordon S. Smith, MD, MPH

From the R. Adams Cowley Shock Trauma Center, University of Maryland Medical Center, Baltimore (Dr Soderstrom), and The Johns Hopkins Injury Prevention Center, Baltimore, Md (Dr Smith).

Since this article does not have an abstract, we have provided the first 150 words of the full text.

Excerpt

"God protects small children and drunks." Based on anecdotal experiences, many trauma care clinicians agree with that thought by an unknown author. The child who rolls out of the upper bunk bed and is not hurt (even remains sleeping!) and the drunk driver who walks away from the severe wreck are thought to have been protected from injury because of the common factor of being relaxed and loose.

In this issue, the study by Jurkovich and colleagues¹ of alcohol's effect on trauma outcomes seems to confirm the old adage. Using sound methods of investigation, they conclude that, for injuries of similar severity, acute alcoholic intoxication is not associated with increased mortality at the scene of injury, during the acute phase of hospital care, or more than 24 hours after admission, nor is it associated with an increase in morbidity as measured by in-hospital complication rates.

Footnotes

Reprint requests to R. Adams Cowley Shock Trauma Center, University of Maryland Medical Center, 22 S Greene St, Baltimore, MD 21201-1595 (Dr Soderstrom).