Somatic Disease Among Alcohol Abusers in an Out-day Patients' Clinic

• Prevalence of former somatic disease [ Time Frame: 3 months after inclusion ] [ Designated as safety issue: No ]
  Prevalence of former somatic disease investigated by anamnestic examination, search in patient journals and communication with the patients community health service.
• Outcome of psychiatric and somatic treatment of alcohol abusers [ Time Frame: 1 year after stopped inclusion ] [ Designated as safety issue: No ]
  Quality of life and score of somatic and psychiatric health 1 year after inclusion

Alcohol abuse is associated with a variety of clinical diseases, but studies on prevalence of different somatic diseases among alcohol abusers are lacking. Studies on populations in an out-day patients' clinic are also lacking.

The investigators aim to study somatic health standard in an out-day patients' clinic population of alcohol abusers, with regard to prevalence of different kinds of somatic diseases, and how the interaction of somatic and psychiatric treatment can influence on patients quality of life. Clinical examination including blood samples and echocardiographic examinations in all participants, other additional examinations (as x-ray, CT or MRI if indicated by clinical findings).

Retrospective methods will be used to study former somatic disease, cross-section design to study present somatic disease and prospective design to study quality of life, psychiatric and somatic health after combination of psychiatric and somatic examinations and treatment.

Alcohol abusers referred to the out-day patients' clinic at Dep. of Psychiatry, Levanger Hospital, Norway

• HEART DISEASE
• Liver Failure
• DEPRESSIVE DISORDER
• Alcoholic Neuropathy

• Out-day patients' clinic
  Alcohol abusers referred to out-day patients' clinic which consent to participate in the study
  Intervention: Other: Psychiatric and somatic examinations and ,if clinical indicated, treatment
• Control
  Control group for the cardiac arm of the study will be matched controls from the Nord-Trøndelag Health Study (HUNT)

• Moss M, Parsons PE, Steinberg KP, Hudson LD, Guidot DM, Burnham EL, Eaton S, Cotsonis GA. Chronic alcohol abuse is associated with an increased incidence of acute respiratory distress syndrome and severity of multiple organ dysfunction in patients with septic shock. Crit Care Med. 2003 Mar;31(3):869-77.
• Awtry EH, Philippides GJ. Alcoholic and cocaine-associated cardiomyopathies. Prog Cardiovasc Dis. 2010 Jan-Feb;52(4):289-99. Review.
• Moss M, Burnham EL. Alcohol abuse in the critically ill patient. Lancet. 2006 Dec 23;368(9554):2231-42. Review.

Inclusion Criteria:

• Alcohol abusers reffered to the out-day patients' clinic at Dep. of Psychiatry, Levanger Hospital, Norway

Exclusion Criteria:

• Not consenting to participate
• Not able to consent