Trajectories of Alcohol Use and Electrophysiological and Morphological Indices of Brain Development: Distinguishing Causes from Consequences

: Alcoholism is a major public health problem. Patterns of drinking during adolescence can influence the likelihood of this outcome. Both environmental variation and familial/genetic susceptibility play important roles in this process. While there is some evidence to suggest that metabolic factors p...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences 2004-06, Vol.1021 (1), p.245-259
Main Author: HILL, SHIRLEY Y.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
adolescence
Adolescent
Age Factors
alcohol dependence
Alcohol Drinking - physiopathology
alcoholism
Alcoholism - genetics
Alcoholism - pathology
Alcoholism - physiopathology
amygdala
Animals
Brain - pathology
brain laterality
Central Nervous System Depressants - pharmacology
Cues
Electrophysiology
Emotions - drug effects
Ethanol - pharmacology
familial/genetic susceptibility
Genetic Predisposition to Disease
Humans
longitudinal studies
multiplex families
Neuropsychological Tests
P300
Personality Development
Phenotype
Risk Factors
Social Environment
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Summary:: Alcoholism is a major public health problem. Patterns of drinking during adolescence can influence the likelihood of this outcome. Both environmental variation and familial/genetic susceptibility play important roles in this process. While there is some evidence to suggest that metabolic factors play a role in whether some individuals are protected from developing alcohol problems, there is substantial reason to look for cognitive factors that are associated with increased susceptibility. Developmental trajectories for information processing that can be reflected in P300 amplitude changes over time, as well as trajectories describing acquisition of postural control when compared in offspring from families with multiple cases of alcoholism or those with none or few, suggest that brain development provides a clue to why some individuals are more susceptible to becoming alcoholic. Finally, differences seen in amygdala volume between high‐ and low‐risk adolescents suggest that functional differences seen in electrophysiological responding or neuropsychological test performance may have anatomical correlates.
ISSN:0077-8923
1749-6632
DOI:10.1196/annals.1308.029