(Press-News.org) A study on the effect of different alcoholic beverages and drinking behaviour on the risk of acute pancreatitis was conducted, using the Swedish Mammography Cohort and Cohort of Swedish Men, to study the association between consumption of spirits, wine and beer and the risk of acute pancreatitis.
In total, 84,601 individuals, aged 46-84 years, were followed for a median of 10 years, of whom 513 developed acute pancreatitis. There was a dose–response association between the amount of spirits consumed on a single occasion and the risk of acute pancreatitis. After multivariable adjustments, there was a 52 per cent (risk ratio 1•52, 95 per cent confidence interval 1•12 to 2•06) increased risk of acute pancreatitis for every increment of five standard drinks of spirits consumed on a single occasion. There was no association between consumption of wine or beer, frequency of alcoholic beverage consumption including spirits, or average total monthly consumption of alcohol (ethanol) and the risk of acute pancreatitis.
Forum Comments
Alcohol consumption has often been found to be a risk factor for acute pancreatitis and, as the authors point out, a number of biologic mechanisms for such an association have been suggested. Overall the risk is rather low, as only 1-3% of heavy drinkers develop acute pancreatitis after 10-20 years of follow up. This study evaluated beverage-specific risk among subjects enrolled in a prospectively collected database that included information on the amount of alcohol consumed on a single occasion, frequency of drinking, total alcohol intake, and a number of potential confounders, such as education, data on body weight, smoking, diet, history of diabetes, and history of gall-bladder disease. Very complex and appropriate statistical analytic methods were used.
The study suggests that a greater number of drinks per occasion ("binge drinking") of spirits increases the risk of acute pancreatitis, but no such relation was seen for the consumption of beer or wine. Forum reviewers suggested that a faster rate of drinking, with a greater rise in Blood Alcohol Concentration (BAC), for spirits drinkers may be an important factor in the observed higher risk of pancreatitis; the increased risk may not necessarily be due to lower levels of antioxidants or to the presence of other toxic substances in spirits.
Average total alcohol consumption did not affect the risk of pancreatitis; instead, it was the number of drinks consumed per occasion (of spirits, in this study) that was associated with an increase in risk. Residual confounding by the pattern of drinking, diet, or by other lifestyle factors could still be operating, and it will require replication of these results in other studies to support the conclusions of the authors.
###
Reference: Azodi OS, Orsini N, Andrén-Sandberg Å, Wolk A. Effect of type of alcoholic beverage in causing acute pancreatitis. Brit J Surgery 2011;DOI: 10.1002/bjs.7632.
Comments by the International Scientific Forum on Alcohol Research on this paper have been provided by the following members:
Fulvio Ursini, MD, Dept. of Biological Chemistry, University of Padova, Padova, Italy.
Gordon Troup, MSc, DSc, School of Physics, Monash University, Victoria, Australia.
Arne Svilaas, MD, PhD, general practice and lipidology, Oslo University Hospital, Oslo, Norway.
Erik Skovenborg, MD, Scandinavian Medical Alcohol Board, Practitioner, Aarhus, Denmark.
Ross McCormick PhD, MSC, MBChB, Associate Dean, Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, The University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand.
Harvey Finkel, MD, Hematology/Oncology, Boston University Medical Center, Boston, MA, USA.
R. Curtis Ellison, MD, Section of Preventive Medicine & Epidemiology, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA.
For the detailed critique of this paper by the International Scientific Forum on Alcohol Research, go to www.bu.edu/alcohol-forum or click here: http://www.bu.edu/alcohol-forum/critique-051-types-of-alcohol-in-relation-to-acute-pancreatitis-11-august-2011/
The International Scientific Forum on Alcohol Research www.alcoholforum4profs.org
Professor R Curtis Ellison
Ellison@alcoholforum4profs.org
Helena Conibear
helena@alcoholforum4profs.org
UK tel: + 44 1300 320869
US tel: +1 508 620-0537
Alcohol consumption in relation to acute pancreatitis
2011-08-12
ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:
Mistaken Identity Rape Case in Massachusetts Finally Comes to an End
2011-08-12
Sexual assault charges can bring tremendous notoriety and an immediate risk to the accused offender's freedom. Law enforcement gives cases involving rape, child molestation, indecent assault and other sex crimes focused attention, and the police often rush to apprehend a suspect if the victim does not personally know the alleged assailant. This means that anyone matching the description given by the victim will be at risk for being accused and charged with the crime, particularly if that person is at the wrong place at the wrong time.
Such was the case when a so-called ...
Researchers decode workings of mysterious, but critical TB drug
2011-08-12
For nearly 60 years, Pyrazinamide (PZA) has been used in conjunction with other medications to treat tuberculosis (TB), but scientists did not fully understand how the drug killed TB bacteria. PZA plays a unique role in shortening the duration of current TB therapy to six months and is used frequently to treat multi-drug resistant TB. A new study, led by researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, suggests that PZA binds to a specific protein named RpsA and inhibits trans-translation, a process that enables the TB bacteria to survive under stressful ...
Effortless sailing with fluid flow cloak
2011-08-12
DURHAM, N.C. – Duke engineers have already shown that they can "cloak" light and sound, making objects invisible -- now, they have demonstrated the theoretical ability to significantly increase the efficiency of ships by tricking the surrounding water into staying still.
"Ships expend a great deal of energy pushing the water around them out of the way as they move forward," said Yaroslav Urzhumov, assistant research professor in electrical and computer engineering at Duke's Pratt School of Engineering. "What our cloak accomplishes is that it reduces the mass of fluid ...
New Federal Rules Will Advance Coal Mining Safety
2011-08-12
It has been just over a year since the Upper Big Branch mine disaster in West Virginia killed 29 miners, and the federal Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) has come out with proposed coal mining safety rule revisions. The proposal is intended to ensure that underground coal mine operators find and fix violations of mandatory health or safety standards, with an overall goal of improving miner health and safety.
This comes as MSHA releases the findings from its yearlong investigation of the Upper Big Branch mine explosion. MSHA assistant secretary Joseph A. Main ...
The Benefits of Outsourcing Your In-House Counsel
2011-08-12
Many small-business owners think their choice is between having in-house counsel or employing outside counsel for their legal needs. The fear inherent to this line of thinking is that, in reality, the choice becomes one of expensive in-house counsel or no legal counsel at all. However, a middle ground exists to provide solutions for a variety of business sizes and needs: outsourced in-house counsel services.
Almost all Business Decisions Have Legal Implications
When you are running your own business, to say you are busy is usually an understatement. From day-to-day ...
Corn silage hybrids and seeding rates
2011-08-12
MADISON, WI, AUGUST 11, 2011 -- Recent studies report that corn hybrids released in the late 2000s, especially Bt hybrids, require higher seeding rates than commercial hybrids released in the 1990s to reach maximum yields. Expectedly, corn seeding rates in the USA have increased significantly in the past 10 years. However, limited data is available on silage yield and quality responses of recently released hybrids to seeding rates.
Cornell scientist William Cox investigated the response of eight hybrids (three Bt and a non-Bt hybrid, two brown midrib and two silage specific ...
Shooting light a curve
2011-08-12
One of the earliest lessons in science that students learn is that a ray or beam of light travels in a straight line. Students also learn that light rays fan out or diffract as they travel. Recently it was discovered that light rays can travel without diffraction in a curved arc in free space. These rays of light were dubbed "Airy beams," after the English astronomer Sir George Biddell Airy, who studied what appears to be the parabolic trajectory of light in a rainbow.
Now, scientists with the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) have demonstrated the ...
Congress Continues Aggressive Efforts to Crack Down on Drunk- Driving Offenders
2011-08-12
Every day Congressional legislatives and authorities across the country are finding new ways to crack down on drunk driving. A recent bill would have allocated funds for a government-research project aimed at working with auto manufacturers to install a type of alcohol detection device inside future vehicles was recently on the table. The bill failed to pass the House and Senate, but it's likely legislators will continue to support and sponsor similar bills.
The Research of Alcohol Detection Systems for Stopping Alcohol-related Fatalities Everywhere (known as the ROADS ...
Woman Sues Queens Sizzler for Alleged Gay Bias Attack by Manager, New York Civil Rights Violation Lawyer Comments
2011-08-12
A discrimination lawsuit was filed in Queens County Supreme Court against the Sizzler Restaurant in Forest Hills, New York on behalf of Liza Friedlander. Friedlander was allegedly attacked by a manager while trying to dine with friends.
It is believed that this case is the first test of the newly enacted anti-bias crime law passed in August 2010 that allows victims of anti-gay and lesbian violence and intimidation to sue their attackers in civil court.
The Sizzler is accused of violating New York City and State Civil and Human Rights Laws because Friedlander was attacked ...
University of Minnesota researchers reveal Wikipedia gender biases
2011-08-12
Computer science researchers in the University of Minnesota's College of Science and Engineering are leading a team that has confirmed a substantial gender gap among editors of Wikipedia and a corresponding gender-oriented disparity in the content. The team's research will be presented at the 2011 WikiSym conference, the seventh annual International Symposium on Wikis and Open Collaboration, in California this fall.
Over the past decade, Wikipedia has become a premier online information resource. About 400 million people around the world visit Wikipedia on the web every ...