Impact of Trauma, Massive Blood Loss and Administration of Resuscitation Fluids on a Person's Blood-Alcohol Concentration and Rate of Ethanol Metabolism

Abstract

Excessive drinking and drunkenness are tightly linked to many types of intentional and unintentional injuries involving trauma and blood loss, which often necessitate emergency medical intervention. This article considers the impact of trauma, massive blood loss, and the administration of life-saving replacement fluids on a person's blood alcohol concentration (BAC) and rate of ethanol metabolism. Both German and English language journals were reviewed and results from animal experiments, human studies, and actual victims of trauma undergoing life-saving treatment were considered. If trauma-related bleeding occurs when some ingested alcohol remains unabsorbed in the stomach, then under these circumstances continued absorption into portal venous blood is delayed, owing to altered splanchnic circulation. Hemodilution caused by administration of replacement fluids has only minimal effects on a preexisting BAC, because ethanol distributes into the total body water (TBW) compartment, which represents 50-60% of body weight. After hypovolemia there is a transfer of fluids from tissue compartments into the blood, which becomes more like plasma in composition with lower hematocrit and hemoglobin content. Unless the trauma or emergency treatment impedes hepatic blood flow, the rate of ethanol metabolism is not expected to differ from normal values, namely 0.10-0.25 g/L/h (0.01-0.025 g% per h). If ethanol is fully absorbed and distributed in all body fluids and tissues, neither massive blood loss nor administration of resuscitating fluids is expected to have any significant effect on a preexisting BAC or the rate of ethanol metabolism.