Cerebral cortical atrophy in alcoholic men.

Sixteen alcoholic men under 50 with no gross evidence of intellectual impairment were evaluated by means of neurologic examination, neuropsychologic testing and computerized tomography. Computerized tomography demonstrated mild to moderate cortical atrophy in 11 of the 16 men when compared to an age-matched medical control group. The cortical atrophy was associated with evidence of memory and visual-motor impairment on neuropsychologic testing. The seriousness of the condition paralleled the length and intensity of alcohol abuse.