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Thromb Haemost 1986; 55(02): 173-177
DOI: 10.1055/s-0038-1661516
Original Article
Schattauer GmbH Stuttgart

Platelet Aggregation and Plasma Lipoproteins in Alcoholics During Alcohol Withdrawal

K Desai
The Departments of Haematology and Medicine, Royal Free Hospital School of Medicine, London, and The Regional Alcoholism and Drug Dependence Unit, St. Bernard’s Hospital, London, UK
,
J S Owen
The Departments of Haematology and Medicine, Royal Free Hospital School of Medicine, London, and The Regional Alcoholism and Drug Dependence Unit, St. Bernard’s Hospital, London, UK
,
D T Wilson
The Departments of Haematology and Medicine, Royal Free Hospital School of Medicine, London, and The Regional Alcoholism and Drug Dependence Unit, St. Bernard’s Hospital, London, UK
,
R A Hutton
The Departments of Haematology and Medicine, Royal Free Hospital School of Medicine, London, and The Regional Alcoholism and Drug Dependence Unit, St. Bernard’s Hospital, London, UK
› Author Affiliations
Further Information

Publication History

Received 28 August 1985

Accepted 02 January 1986

Publication Date:
18 July 2018 (online)

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Summary

Platelet aggregation, platelet lipid composition and plasma lipoprotein concentrations were measured each week in a group of seventeen alcoholics, without overt liver disease, for one month, following acute, total alcohol withdrawal. The platelets were initially hypoaggregable but, within 1-2 weeks of cessation of drinking, they became hyperaggregable and then gradually returned towards normal values. Hyperaggregability could not be explained by increases in either the cholesterol or the arachidonic acid content of the platelets. Plasma very-low-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels remained high throughout the study, but the initially raised levels of high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol fell by 26%. Low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol concentration rose by 10% after two weeks of withdrawal but then returned to about the starting level. The resulting changes in the plasma LDL-cholesterol: HDL-cholesterol ratio, which had increased by more than 50% after two weeks of abstinence, essentially paralleled the time course of enhanced platelet reactivity in all but four of the alcoholics. These findings suggest that alterations in plasma lipoprotein concentrations during acute alcohol withdrawal may be a contributory factor to the haemostatic disorders present in such patients.

Key words

Alcoholism - HDL - Lipoprotein - Platelet aggregation - Platelet lipids
 

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