Alcohol protects patients with trauma from renal and cardiac complications

Researchers at the University of Illinois at Chicago School of Public Health have found that injured patients with alcohol in their blood had a reduced risk of developing cardiac and renal complications, and an overall lesser chance of death, the Medical Daily reported.

They looked at 10 years of cases with 85,000 trauma patients whose blood alcohol levels ranged from 0 to 0.5 percent, which is six times the level of legal impairment in the United States. Blood alcohol concentration was the indicator of a reduced risk of complications. Cardiac complications were reduced by 23.5 percent while renal complications were reduced by 30 percent.

Heart disease complications include heart failure, heart attack, stroke, aneurysm, peripheral artery disease, and sudden cardiac arrest. About 600,000 people die of heart disease alone in the United States, which accounts for one out of every four deaths, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Renal complications include chronic kidney disease, which accounts for more than 20 million people in the United States, according to the CDC. By decreasing the risk of cardiac and renal complications, alcohol could have great potential for trauma patients once it’s researched more.

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