Alcohol Calculations in Emergency and Forensic Medicine

Abstract

Knowing the degree of alcohol intoxication can be imperative in the decision-making process of diagnoses, treatment and discharge decisions in some situations. Blood testing provides a snapshot of intoxication at the time the sample is drawn but not earlier (e.g., at the time of injury) or later, although information of the latter would be useful in epidemiological comparisons about risk and injury. Mathematical analyses based on reported alcohol use or from a single objective chemical test are presented validated and recommended to allow estimates of alcohol intoxication at specifi c times relative to an injury or other event.