Alcoholism alcohol intoxication. Degree of alcohol intoxication

Simple alcoholic intoxication is divided according to the criterion of severity into three degrees: mild, moderate and severe.

The total clinical assessment of the state of the intoxicated is determined by the same two main effects of alcohol: psychotropic and toxic. In intoxication, polar groups of symptoms naturally intertwine. Euphoria and activity are replaced by lethargy and growing stupor. Psychomotor agitation, in turn, turns into slow, poorly coordinated movements and complete adynamia.

An additional criterion for assessing the severity of intoxication may be the level of concentration of alcohol in the blood. But it should immediately be noted that the severity of the clinical manifestations of intoxication and the amount of alcohol concentration in the blood do not always correlate. The ratios here have a time spread, depending on individual characteristics, in particular, on the work of a number of enzymatic systems. The severity of the clinical manifestations of alcohol intoxication also depends on the concentration and amount of alcohol taken, the functional state of the drinker, the nature of the food, the conditions in which alcohol is taken.

Rice. 4. Approximate correlation between the degree of alcohol intoxication and blood alcohol content

A mild degree of alcohol intoxication (Fig. 4) is characterized by the predominance of the psychotropic effect of alcohol over the toxic one. Usually, a mild degree of intoxication corresponds to a blood alcohol concentration in the range of 0.5-1.5%. Signs of alcohol poisoning of the central nervous system are subtle. There is a decrease in the accuracy of small movements, the percentage of errors increases when performing any type of activity that requires attention and concentration. The perception time is lengthened. Attention is easily distracted, superficial. The critical attitude towards oneself and the surrounding situation decreases. Speech articulation may deteriorate slightly.

The psychotropic effects of alcohol in a mild degree of intoxication are reduced to experiences of a state of mental comfort. Often it is accompanied by the effect of non-specific stimulation. The mood is often elevated, euphoria is noted. Intoxicated are animated, the behavior is expressive. Disinhibition of drives (food, sexual) is often noted.

In an intoxicated person, reddening of the skin, an increase in blood pressure, increased heart rate, sweating and other changes in the autonomic nervous system are usually noted.

The duration of mild alcohol intoxication varies widely - from a few minutes to an hour or more. Following this, as a rule, some decline in mood, lethargy, and slight motor retardation are noted.

It is generally accepted that the peak of the positively colored psychotropic effects of alcohol falls on the resorptive phase (Balyakin, 1962). When the absorption ends and the removal of alcohol from the body begins, the mental experiences associated with intoxication gradually fade. However, there is no clear parallelism here, since the so-called elimination phase is determined by a decrease in the concentration of alcohol in the blood. At the same time, its concentration in organs and tissues, in particular in the brain, remains high for a long time, which contributes to psychotropic effects.

The average degree of simple alcohol intoxication is already a more complex picture, based on a combination of components of the toxic and psychotropic effects of alcohol. First of all, there is an increase in the proportion of symptoms of CNS poisoning in the clinical picture of intoxication. Yes, and the psychotropic effect of alcohol is becoming less regulated. The average degree of alcohol intoxication often develops with a content of 1.5-2.5% alcohol in the blood. Speech in intoxicated people is blurred, often slowed down, the selection of words is difficult. Disturbances in coordination of movements are noted: small, precise movements are impossible, handwriting is upset. The gait becomes shaky, uncertain, movements are impetuous and sweeping.

Mental experiences lose their integrity. Orientation in the situation is also partially broken. Perception of external events is difficult, associative processes are upset. Self-esteem rises, a critical attitude to one's condition and behavior sharply decreases. Behavior itself becomes more and more impulsive, sometimes inadequate.

Mood swings are typical, euphoria is easily replaced by discontent, irritability, resentment. Depressively colored experiences appear, which can again be replaced by euphoria.

Intoxication often ends in sleep. A series of events of intoxication (usually the final episodes) can be forgotten (amnesiac). Upon awakening, a pronounced post-intoxication state with reduced performance is noted.

A severe degree of simple alcohol intoxication is characterized by the predominance of the toxic effects of alcohol and the effects of depression of the central nervous system in the clinical picture. The concentration of alcohol in the blood - 2.5% and above. An increase in alcohol concentration above 5% can lead to death.

Clinically, a severe degree of alcohol intoxication corresponds to a soporous state, and with a deepening of intoxication - to a coma. Orientation is completely lost, massive disturbances are noted from all body systems (CNS, cardiovascular, respiratory, etc.). Sometimes there is involuntary discharge of urine. After getting out of intoxication for several days, post-intoxication disorders, decreased performance, amnesia of the period of intoxication are noted.

As already noted, alcohol intoxication is the starting point of alcoholism, and throughout the disease - one of its main manifestations.

During the period of alcoholic intoxication, changes occur literally at all levels and in all systems of the human body. Therefore, it makes sense to take a closer look at some of the most important changes.

A condition resulting from the intake of alcohol.

It is accompanied by transient changes in behavior, which is associated with a violation of the ratio of the processes of excitation and inhibition. Arising from drunkenness emotional, motor, verbal excitement, loss of self-control and critical assessment of the situation, weakening of inhibitory influences determine the frequency of committing antisocial acts (see the article "Alcoholism"). With frequent, immoderate alcohol intake in order to obtain the euphoric effect of alcohol intoxication, a pathological addiction may develop, accompanied by mental and somato-neurological disorders.

The mechanism of action of alcohol

As it is absorbed from the stomach and intestines, the concentration of alcohol in the blood increases, reaching (with a single dose) a maximum in the second hour after ingestion, then gradually falling. The degree of intoxication (subjective sensations and objective expression) is higher on the rise of the curve than with the same blood alcohol concentration on its decline.

Up to 10% of alcohol is excreted from the body (through the lungs, kidneys, skin) unchanged, the rest is oxidized by alcohol dehydrogenase and catalase systems. Oxidation rate (Widmark coefficient) - up to 8 ml of absolute alcohol per hour.

Histochemical and radiological research methods in the clinic and experiment have shown that in a healthy person, traces of a single dose of an average dose of ethanol are found in the body within two weeks, although alcohol disappears from the blood by the 4-5th hour. Observation of labeled C14 refutes the existing ideas about that. that a single intake of alcohol acts exclusively on c. n. N of page, in particular on a cerebral cortex. At the first dose, the highest concentration of alcohol is found in the liver and striated muscles, and then in the c. n. N of page, first of all in subcrustal educations and a cerebellum, then in bark. With subsequent intakes of alcohol, ethanol is increasingly concentrated in c. n. With.

Intoxication is characterized by the excitation of the underlying structures of c. n. With. with a decrease in the functions of higher. Pathophysiological studies show that small doses of alcohol cause only stimulation of the diencephalic region; with increasing dose, signs of excitation of the cortex appear. Only high doses lead to inhibition of the cortex; limiting, lethal doses cause sequential inhibition of the underlying formations, the diencephalic region, and the centers of the medulla oblongata.

The narcotic effect of alcoholic beverages is the result of exposure not only to c. n. With. (alcohol penetrates the blood-brain barrier), but also to peripheral nerve formations, which changes the general vegetative background.

Clinic of alcohol intoxication

The rate of appearance of the first signs of intoxication depends on the strength of the drink and the degree of filling the stomach with food; when taken on an empty stomach, even weak drinks, the absorption of alcohol by the mucous membrane is higher. The degree of intoxication is determined by the amount of absolute alcohol per 1 kg of body weight, individual tolerance and the psycho-physical state of a person while drinking alcohol. With fatigue and exhaustion, small doses can cause severe intoxication; in a state of mental stress, the intoxicating effect of alcoholic beverages is reduced.

Children, old people and the persons suffering from organic defeat of c. n. N of page, diseases of a liver, a stomach (including after a resection of a stomach) and endocrine frustration (except for diabetes and a hyperthyroidism), are especially sensitive to action of alcohol. Women in their 20s and 30s are more tolerant of alcohol than men of the same age. As women age, alcohol tolerance decreases in women; men are quite hardy up to 50 years inclusive.

It is tentatively considered to be a weak degree of intoxication, the concentration of alcohol in the blood up to 20/00, medium - up to 30/00, severe - higher. A blood alcohol concentration above 50/00 is considered fatal. But with equal concentration, the degree of intoxication of subjects can vary significantly. So, a patient with chronic alcoholism in the second stage shows a high tolerance to alcohol, and intoxication is hardly noticeable even with a high concentration of alcohol in the blood.

The first subjective signs of alcohol intoxication are somatic sensations, as they intensify and expand, creating a mental state of euphoria. There is a shine of the sclera, hyperemia of the face, hypersalivation, hyperhidrosis, the pulse slows down, vascular and muscle tone decreases. Feeling of warmth, pleasant muscle weakness, increased appetite. There is a state of general psychophysical satisfaction, a rise in mood; mental and motor activity decreases, the brightness of sensory impressions increases, emotional saturation increases. After some time (10-30 minutes), the pupils dilate, there is a weakness of convergence, increased urination, increased diuresis, increased pain threshold; possible dry mouth, pallor of the skin. Pulse and blood pressure equalize.

With functional weakness, insufficiency of the cardiovascular system, tachycardia and hypertension are possible. Mental and motor activity increases against the background of a disorder in the quality of functions, including higher, cortical ones. Movements are poorly coordinated, sweeping, dysmetria, imbalance (ataxia) are pronounced. Violated subtle movements, facial expressions - the face of a drunk sometimes becomes mask-like. In some cases, with significant intoxication, convergence is disturbed, strabismus, diplopia appear. Speech is loud and slurred. Associations are accelerated, but superficial associations predominate (according to consonance, contiguity). A decrease in the quality of mental processes is manifested in disorders of concentration. Disappears criticism to their words and actions. There is a reassessment of one's qualities and capabilities, an egocentric fixation of experiences. Hitherto controlled instincts and latent personality traits appear. Thus, affectively saturated, significant experiences (jealousy, vanity, resentment, etc.) are revealed.

Degrees of alcohol intoxication

With a mild degree of intoxication clinically visible manifestations are either absent or close to the clinic alcohol intoxication of moderate severity. However, there are no consequences the next day.

With moderate intoxication drunk gives the impression of a person disinhibited, with a lower intelligence than in reality. If the amount of alcohol is not overdosed, intoxication gradually turns into drowsiness, lethargy; if intoxication occurred in the evening hours, deep sleep sets in. Upon awakening after moderate intoxication, a post-intoxication state (hangover) is expressed - lethargy, fatigue, lack of appetite, heaviness in the head, low mood, sometimes sadness, dissatisfaction with oneself and others, irritability. Mental and physical performance is reduced: comprehension and concentration of attention are difficult, the pace of mental processes is slowed down, muscle tone is reduced, coordination of movements is impaired.

With a severe degree of intoxication orientation in the environment is lost, speech slows down, interspersed with pauses, the connection of experiences is lost, emotions are smoothed out, mimic and verbal expressiveness disappears. In 2/3 of cases, vomiting appears as a protective reaction of the body. With an increase in intoxication, the disturbance of consciousness deepens, breathing slows down (possibly breathing of the Cheyne-Stokes type), becomes hoarse, cardiovascular tone decreases, reflex excitability decreases, reactions to external stimuli disappear, immobility appears, muscle relaxation, stupor develops, stupor, and sometimes coma . Death can occur from paralysis of the respiratory or vascular-motor centers, as well as in a state of alcoholic coma.

It is easy to diagnose an alcoholic coma by the specific smell emanating from the patient. However, in all cases of alcoholic coma, it is necessary to exclude the possibility of diabetic coma against the background of mild alcohol intoxication, acute injury to c. n. With.

Mixed alcohol-barbituric coma is not clinically diagnosed; it is necessary to make a laboratory study and monitor the patient after coming out of a coma.

The next day after severe poisoning, performance decreases, physical inactivity, mental and somatic (cardiovascular) weakness, anorexia are pronounced; depressive mood - narcotic amnesia is noted (see Chronic alcoholism). Sleep disturbance is possible for several days (hypnotics are contraindicated).

Mild to moderate alcohol intoxication healthy individuals are not accompanied by amnesia.

While maintaining the general pattern of development of symptoms, the manifestation of intoxication is as individualized as the personality; the constitution, emotional features matter, and behavior in a state of intoxication depends on the level of intellectual development and culture. With an appropriate predisposition (antisocial, aggressive tendencies), affective excitability and loss of control over one's behavior in a state of intoxication, conditions for offenses are created. Lose self-control in a state of intoxication, persons whose social attitudes, regulations are not expressed, or patients with alcoholism, in whom the dissociation of control over their behavior, motor activity and affectation is very large. When evaluating the behavior of an intoxicated person, it is necessary to take into account those cases when a person deliberately takes alcohol in order to reduce self-control, get rid of disturbing fears and take a long-planned “decisive” action.

In some cases of acute alcohol intoxication, not ordinary, but pathological intoxication may develop.

Treatment of alcohol intoxication

Treatment acute alcohol intoxication. The search for sobering-up means has not yet yielded results. Recommended intravenous administration of glucose, fructose with ascorbic acid or vitamin B6, gemineurin (pyridoxine), cocarboxylase. To maintain cardiac activity, cordiamine, camphor are indicated, to excite respiratory functions - inhalation of ammonia, lobelia, cytiton.

Treatment of alcoholic coma is similar to medical intervention for comatose states of another origin. However, gastric lavage is mandatory, parenteral administration of oxidizing agents - fructose, thiamine complex, especially B1 and B6, and central analeptics.

Recently, there have been reports that the elimination of the use of bemegride in detox centers has increased the survival rate of those who sober up. Intravenous infusions of 0.25% potassium permanganate solution, 1% methylene blue solution can be recommended.

Methods for determining alcohol intoxication

Methods for determining alcohol in the body. When determining alcohol, qualitative reactions are first used, with a positive result, a quantitative determination is carried out. Recently, a quantitative determination has been used without preliminary qualitative.

Qualitative colorimetric reactions (determination of alcohol in exhaled air) are based on the ability of ethanol to oxidize various reagents (Rappoport, Mokhov-Shinkarenko, Niklu test).

Of the quantitative methods that make it possible to establish the concentration of alcohol, the most widely used are the photometric method (for examining blood, urine, cerebrospinal fluid, gastric contents) and the gas-liquid chromatography method (for examining blood, urine and exhaled air).

Forensic medical examination of death due to alcohol poisoning

Acute fatal poisoning with ethyl alcohol is established in a complex of macro- and micromorphological features with data from a forensic chemical study of biological material (blood, urine, cerebrospinal fluid, etc.).

Often, morphological changes in alcohol poisoning are not pronounced, many signs are also found in other types of death. At autopsy, attention is drawn to such signs as the smell of alcohol from the internal organs (brain) and a sharp overflow of the bladder.

In case of alcohol poisoning, there is an increased permeability of the walls of blood vessels - diapedetic extravasates and often ruptures of blood vessels. In this regard, small apoplectic foci are found in the brain tissue and hemorrhages under the meninges (according to A. Tardieu in 86%), hemorrhages in the mucous membrane of the stomach and duodenum, under the epicardium, under the pulmonary pleura, in the mucous membrane of the trachea and large bronchi, into nerve trunks, into the adrenal cortex, etc.

Violation of hemodynamics is manifested in uneven blood filling of the myocardium, in edema of the brain and pia mater, lung tissue and other organs. Often there is puffiness of the face, edema of loose retroperitoneal tissue and mesentery, tissue around the bladder and its wall itself, edema of the bed and wall of the gallbladder, hepato-duodenal ligament, excess fluid in the serous cavities, venous congestion.

Lethal doses of ethyl alcohol are extremely variable and individual, they depend on internal and external factors, in particular on individual tolerance, age characteristics (old people and children are extremely sensitive to it), gender characteristics, metabolic characteristics, food intake and its nature. , from psycho-emotional factors, initial functional states, etc.

Death from alcohol poisoning can occur during the period of resorption (often when drinking high-concentration drinks at a fast pace), at the height of the maximum blood alcohol content or during the elimination period, in some cases, with its complete disappearance from the blood (M. I. Avdeev). Link (K. Linck) gives data on the time of death: during the period of resorption - in 12%, in the early period of elimination - in 52% and at the end of the elimination phase - in 36% of cases.

Often, the maximum level of alcohol in the blood with relative accuracy has to be set indirectly by its content in the urine and cerebrospinal fluid; for example, if the blood contains 1.00/00, and in the cystic urine and cerebrospinal fluid close to 5.00/00, then it can be assumed that for some number of hours before the onset of death, the blood alcohol content was about 5.00 /00 (usually slightly lower).

There is a method for retrospective determination of alcohol concentration using the Widmark coefficient. However, given the individuality of oxidation processes, the increase and irregularity of alcohol oxidation in the body of those who abuse it, this method cannot be considered reliable.

Fatal outcomes of alcohol poisoning depend not only on the amount of alcohol consumed, impurities and additives to it, but also on the level of products of incomplete oxidation (acetaldehyde, etc.) of ethanol.

Alcoholism is a deadly and dangerous pathological phenomenon that develops as a result of prolonged and regular use of alcoholic products. Alcohol dependence is formed, as a rule, at the mental and physical level. Based on statistics, about a hundred thousand people die every year from ethyl alcohol poisoning.

People who are under the influence of alcohol become dangerous both for others and for themselves. . This is especially true for drunk drivers.. Fatal accidents are most often committed by those people who are under the influence of alcohol.

The degree is divided into several categories, which we will discuss below.

Degrees of alcohol intoxication

Regular consumption of alcoholic beverages, especially in large quantities, can have a detrimental effect on a person’s mental and physical health. When people are addicted to alcohol, sexual activity decreases, progresses, and almost all internal organs are destroyed.

Intoxication is caused due to the action of alcohol, or rather, due to its toxic and psychotropic effects. To identify the stage of intoxication, it is necessary to take into account the general state of human health, the amount of alcohol consumed and its concentration, the environment and the calorie content of food while drinking alcohol. It is worth noting that mentally or physically tired people get drunk much faster.

It is customary to distinguish three stages of alcohol intoxication: light, medium, heavy. The latter degree can even lead to death.

Light

Speaking about the characteristic features of the mild stage of intoxication, it is necessary to take into account the existing excited state, some euphoria, a change in attitude towards others, which is not quite the same as in a sober state. With a slight intoxication, problems are perceived much easier by a drunk. Therefore, often closed and uncommunicative people become sociable and can easily get acquainted with new people who meet by chance.

The behavior in this case will depend on the mood in which the person drank alcoholic beverages and in what company. . If he can control himself, it will maintain adequate behavior for a long time. In a company, most often drunk people begin to relax, losing control of themselves, so that intoxication comes faster. Light intoxication can adversely affect psychomotor functions:

A drunk person may also treat the people around him inappropriately: often drunk people begin to fulfill all desires, become generous, kind, which unfamiliar friends can take advantage of. But a reveler can also be rude to someone, to show faux pas, whatever he would never do while sober.

Being intoxicated, a person can also overestimate his self-esteem, giving unrealistic promises to acquaintances, committing such acts, for which he will later have to pay.

As for the duration of light intoxication, it can range from several minutes to several hours. When a person sobers up, as a rule, he becomes somehow inhibited, his mood drops.

Medium

The average degree of alcohol intoxication, as a rule, causes a violation of the central nervous system, as well as the brain. The salient features of this degree are as follows:

In addition, the middle stage is characterized by a loss of orientation to the environment, so a person can do the following:

• Swear.
• A drunk person may experience sexual harassment towards the opposite sex.
• A person can openly relieve his need.
• A drunk person can walk without any hesitation in the nude.
• Aggression towards other people is often manifested.
• The gait becomes shaky, uncertain.
• Movements become sweeping, impetuous.

Besides, for an average degree of intoxication characteristically difficult perception of surrounding events, a drunk person has sharp jumps in mood, irritability can abruptly be replaced by cheerfulness, rudeness by tenderness, depression by euphoria, behavior becomes impulsive.

But intoxication can affect a person in a completely different way: the drunk becomes more gloomy, drowsy and withdrawn.

Most often, intoxication ends with sleep. And when a drunk wakes up, some previous events, especially those that happened before going to bed, are erased from the person’s memory. You can also observe a pronounced post-intoxication state. In parallel with this, the performance decreases sharply.

heavy

For a severe stage of alcoholic intoxication, the following is characteristic:

• The central nervous system is deeply affected.
• The person is completely unconscious.
• Spontaneous bowel movements of the bladder and intestines are observed.
• There is an epileptic seizure.

In addition, a person becomes very lethargic, unable to respond to external stimuli, his eyeballs begin to rush around like crazy, which reveal serious violations for all body systems. A person completely ceases to navigate in the surrounding space. It is also worth noting that this degree of intoxication can result in death or coma.

When a person comes out of this state, he is still in a severe post-intoxication state for several days, he has a decrease in the efficiency of the whole organism, and the presence of amnesia of recent events is also characteristic. At the same time, the concentration of alcohol in the body, especially in the brain, is quite high, which can manifest itself in the form of psychotropic effects. Consequences can occur in the form of serious and irreversible mental disorders, in the form of visual and auditory hallucinations, encephalopathy and others.

Degrees of intoxication in ppm

Much depends on the stage. such as being able to drive a vehicle. Sometimes there are situations when it is simply necessary to find out exactly how drunk a person is. For this, there are special indicators that determine the stage of intoxication in ppm. For this, as a rule, a special device is used, which is actively used by the police services, doctors and ordinary citizens.

• The mild effect of alcohol is based on a blood alcohol content of 0.3 to 0.5 ppm.
• Slight intoxication, in which the blood alcohol content is from 0.5 to 1.5 ppm.
• Average intoxication is characterized by the content of alcohol in the blood from 1.5 to 2.5 ppm.
• High level intoxication implies a blood alcohol content of 2.5 to 3.0 ppm.
• Deep intoxication, as well as alcohol poisoning, after which it may follow, the alcohol content in the blood is from 3.0 to 5.0 ppm.
• Severe fatal poisoning is characterized by a blood alcohol content of more than 5.0 ppm.

modified forms

If the subject has certain mental disorders or special personality traits, intoxication can take a variety of atypical forms. In this case, it may be in the following form:

Harm of alcohol

Regardless of the stage of intoxication and the amount of alcohol consumed, alcohol-containing drinks always have a pathological effect on the human body. Alcoholic products are officially recognized as a dangerous narcotic substance that can cause unique harm to human health, as well as become addictive. In addition, alcohol can have a negative effect on the brain, which, in turn, regulates the activity of all organs that affect the smooth functioning of all systems.

The negative impact of alcoholic products is caused by a violation of the supply of oxygen to nerve cells, as a result of which they slowly begin to die. First of all, it can affect the intellectual abilities of a person. The cerebral cortex begins to be affected, brain activity decreases, and the behavior of the subject at the same time gradually changes not for the best.

To independently determine the degree of intoxication, you only need to observe a person. As a rule, he begins to change in character and behavior. . For this, it is also necessary to evaluate the behavior and speech of a drunk person, as well as to check his ability to coordinate movements, an objective perception of the environment.

If you want to more accurately determine the content of alcohol in the blood, then you need to conduct special tests. In this case, the indicators will be directly related to the elapsed time after drinking. The more time passes from the moment of drinking alcohol, the lower the indicators will be. Not everyone can independently assess their behavior when intoxicated, so it is not recommended to abuse alcoholic beverages.

Attention, only TODAY!

Alcohol intoxication is a state familiar to every person. It is characterized by an improvement in mood, the emergence of a feeling of relaxedness and cheerfulness. Undoubtedly, the use of alcoholic beverages can bring a lot of emotional and physical pleasure to a person. However, severe degrees of alcohol intoxication entail many negative consequences, and in some cases end in death.

It should be noted that alcohol consumption affects different people differently. Some experience an emotional upsurge, joy and euphoria, others have a feeling of depression, depression and despair, and some people even become aggressive and prone to antisocial acts. Moreover, the degree of manifestation of all these symptoms directly depends on the amount of alcohol consumed.

In order to somehow classify this state, the stages of intoxication were singled out. They are determined by the concentration of ethyl alcohol in the blood. Intoxication is measured in ppm (‰) - this is an international unit of measurement that shows how many milliliters of ethanol are contained in 1 liter of blood. It should be noted that in this case, it is the volume (ml) that is taken into account, and not the mass (g).

Determining the amount of alcohol in the blood is possible only in the laboratory. Breathalyzers and breathalyzers used to detect it in domestic conditions show only an approximate result. The devices measure the level of ethanol in the air exhaled by a person, which only indirectly indicates its amount in the biological fluids of the body. The approximate degree of intoxication can be calculated independently, but for this you need to know your body weight and the amount of pure alcohol in the drink you drink.

First, alcohol enters the oral cavity, pharynx and esophagus, after which it enters the stomach. Its absorption occurs in almost all parts of the digestive system - from the oral mucosa to the enterocytes of the small intestine. The maximum concentration of ethyl alcohol in the blood is observed 30-60 minutes after drinking alcohol.

Together with the blood, alcohol is carried to all organs and penetrates into all tissues of the human body. Its splitting occurs in the liver with the participation of its enzyme systems. Part of the ethanol is excreted in sweat, exhaled air and urine.

Ethanol has the ability to affect the cerebral cortex and many structures of the brain stem. As you know, the cortex is responsible for thought processes, the cerebellum - for motor functions and orientation in space. The brainstem contains the respiratory and vasomotor centers. Therefore, after drinking alcohol, reflexes weaken in people, slight disorientation occurs, and heartbeat and breathing become more frequent. The severity of these symptoms depends on the stage of intoxication.

Ethanol has a negative effect on other organs:

• Stomach and intestines. Alcohol and toxic products of its metabolism irritate the digestive system, disrupt the process of digestion and, with prolonged use, lead to dysbacteriosis. Alcoholics are much more likely to suffer from gastritis, ulcers and cancer than non-drinkers.
• Liver. After drinking alcohol, transient necrosis (death) of hepatocytes is observed. With prolonged alcohol abuse, the body suffers much more. Degenerative processes often continue even after a person has stopped drinking. This often leads to the development of fatty hepatosis and subsequently - cirrhosis of the liver.
• Organs of the genitourinary system. Since ethanol is excreted by the kidneys, it partially precipitates in them. In addition, the substance accumulates in semen, prostatic secretions, and testicles. This negatively affects the potency and reproductive abilities of men.
• Heart and blood vessels. A person who drinks has an increased risk of developing alcoholic cardiomyopathy, various arrhythmias, and other problems. Ethanol acts on the membranes of red blood cells, partially destroys them and changes the charge of the cells. As a result, the red bodies stick together and clog small vessels. This leads to tissue ischemia and cell death (including brain neurons).

As a rule, alcohol intoxication persists for 4-5 hours. The table below shows the time of excretion from the body of various alcoholic beverages, depending on their quantity and body weight of a person.

Alcohol withdrawal table

After the body processes a large amount of alcohol, a hangover can occur - a condition that occurs due to the fact that the liver enzyme systems cannot cope with the load. As a result, an excess amount of acetaldehyde, an intermediate metabolite of ethanol, accumulates in the blood. It is this substance that causes unpleasant symptoms such as headache, nausea and psycho-emotional discomfort.

Symptoms of alcohol intoxication

It is not difficult to recognize a drunk person - he is betrayed by unusual looseness, sociability, lack of self-criticism and a positive mood. All these are external signs of intoxication. The degree of their severity directly depends on the volume and strength of the drunk alcohol. However, such a correspondence is observed only up to a certain time.

More severe degrees of alcohol intoxication are characterized by severe neurological, somatic and mental disorders. Men and women in this state are prone to inappropriate actions. Severe alcohol intoxication is dangerous because people lose the ability to control their behavior and be responsible for their own actions.

Intoxication is characterized by the following clinical symptoms:

• Changing habitual behavior. The person may be overly agitated, active, and verbose, or become withdrawn, sleepy, and lethargic. Some people show signs of alcohol intoxication, such as rage and aggression. This condition is very dangerous.
• Unreasonable mood swings. A person can be in a good mood, and after a minute start crying or falling into a rage. It does not take much effort to identify this - just watch the drinker for a few minutes.
• Disorientation in time, space and situation. A person does not quite adequately respond to the environment and other people.
• Slurred speech. A man or woman cannot clearly formulate his thoughts, confuses words, says meaningless things.
• Pupil dilation, slow reaction to light, nystagmus. If you ask a person to look at one point for a while, you can notice a slight trembling of the eyeballs.
• Sweeping movements, unsteady gait, tremor. Such people usually fail to perform the toe-to-nose test and stagger in the Romberg position.
• Vegetative disorders. These include a change in heart rate, an increase (or, conversely, a decrease) in pressure, increased sweating and salivation, pallor or cyanosis of the skin.

All degrees of alcohol intoxication are characterized by the appearance of an unpleasant odor from a drunk person. It can come from the mouth, hair, clothing, and even the body. As you know, alcohol contained in the blood is excreted with sweat and exhaled air for several hours after a person has stopped drinking.

With a severe degree of alcohol intoxication, a violation of a person’s vital functions occurs: breathing slows down, the pulse quickens, pressure drops sharply (up to collapse). Pain sensitivity also decreases or disappears, reflexes weaken, convulsions and other dangerous symptoms occur. This condition can cause coma and further death.

Degrees of intoxication

The first signs of alcohol intoxication appear quite quickly - within half an hour after taking an alcoholic drink. The more a person drinks, the more noticeable the main symptoms. However, when drinking a small amount of ethyl alcohol, intoxication may not manifest itself at all, and in order to identify it, it will be necessary to conduct a laboratory blood test.

Depending on the amount of ethanol in the blood, the following clinical stages of intoxication are distinguished:

• <0,3‰ – алкогольное опьянение не проявляется никоим образом;
• 0.3-0.5‰ - a small content of ethyl alcohol in the blood, which has a slight effect on the body;
• 0.5-1.5‰ is a mild degree at which mood improves slightly, peripheral vision worsens and slight disorientation occurs;
• 1.5-2.5‰ - the average degree of intoxication - all of the above clinical symptoms become more pronounced;
• 2.5-3‰ - this concentration of ethanol is detected with a severe degree of intoxication, the person is in a depressed state, brain activity is impaired;
• 3-5‰ - typical for a very severe degree of intoxication, a fatal outcome is possible;
• >5‰ - severe poisoning. In the severe stage of alcohol intoxication, the work of all organs and the brain is disrupted, which can lead to the most serious consequences for the body.

What determines the speed of intoxication

It is easy to see that different people get drunk at different rates. Even sitting at the same table, some feel cheerful and cheerful, while others may already be pretty intoxicated.

The fact is that the speed of intoxication depends on a number of factors. These include:

• body weight of a person;
• gender (male or female);
• the amount of food in the stomach;
• general health;
• the strength of the alcoholic beverage;
• the amount drunk;
• the presence of gas in the drink;
• the speed at which alcohol is drunk;
• mixing drinks of different strengths.

Naturally, the more a person weighs, the less he will get drunk. To get drunk, he needs more alcohol. Women are more sensitive to the effects of ethyl alcohol, and not only because they are shorter and weigh less than most men. The fact is that in the female body the metabolism occurs differently - that's why women get drunk faster than men.

Food that fills the stomach slows down the absorption of ethanol, so alcohol intoxication develops faster in hungry people. Therefore, alcoholic beverages should always be eaten. Carbonated drinks are also absorbed into the blood faster.

To avoid getting too drunk, you should not drink too fast. If you stretch the drinking of a bottle of wine for the whole evening (instead of drinking it in one gulp), you can avoid sharp intoxication, discomfort and a terrible hangover the next morning.