Relative kindling effect of detoxification and non-detoxification admissions in alcoholics.

We reviewed the histories of 340 men and 60 women who were admitted for alcohol detoxification to determine if hospitalizations unrelated to detoxification increased the prevalence of seizures observed in these patients. Previous investigations on this cohort suggested that recurrent detoxification admissions increased the probability of seizure histories. Detoxification and non-detoxification hospitalizations were calculated from patient reports and chart reviews on patients admitted for alcohol detoxification. Discriminant analysis of each type of hospitalization and total hospitalizations for each sex revealed an increased risk of seizure activity correlating with non-detoxification hospitalizations, but the correlation was weaker than that observed for detoxification admissions and for total admissions. This correlation between hospitalizations and seizure prevalence supports the hypothesis that recurrent alcohol withdrawal may have a kindling effect.