Reversible Acute Muscular Syndrome in Chronic Alcoholism

IN recent years the relation of the chronic ingestion of large amounts of alcoholic beverages to myocardial disease1 2 3 4 and to hypoglycemia5 6 7 8 has been well established. That clinical abnormalities of skeletal muscle may occur in alcoholic patients is less well known. European workers9 10 11 12 have described an acute muscular syndrome characterized by muscle aching, tenderness and edema in which hyperpotassemia, increased serum glutamic oxalacetic transaminase activity, myoglobinuria and renal damage are frequent but inconstant findings. However, only a few such patients have been recognized in this country.13 , 14 In the course of studies of muscle wasting in patients with hepatic cirrhosis, we encountered . . .