Assessment of the distribution of nerve conduction velocities in alcoholics.

To assess the effects of chronic alcohol ingestion on the faster and slower nerve fibers (alpha fiber group) in the peripheral nervous system, the distribution of nerve conduction velocities (DCV) and conventional maximal motor and sensory nerve conduction velocities (MCV and SCV) in the median nerve were measured in 23 male patients with severe alcoholic dependency (DSM-III-R), aged 30-64 (mean, 50) years, and in 23 age-matched healthy men. The DCV was expressed by the conduction velocities below which 10, 20,..., 80, and 90% of active fibers lie (V10, V20,..., V80, and V90 velocities). The V40 to V90 velocities of the DCV were significantly slower in the alcoholics than in the control subjects; the SCV and MCV in the alcoholics were also significantly slowed. These findings suggest that the faster large myelinated nerve fibers are more sensitive to chronic alcohol ingestion than the slower large myelinated nerve fibers.