Conference summary: Consensus Conference on Alcohol Dependence and the Role of Pharmacotherapy in its Treatment.

Alcoholism, a major public health problem throughout the world, causes enormous damage to health and quality of life and undermines the well-being of families and society. It is associated with liver disease, cancer, cardiovascular problems, accidental deaths, suicides, and homicides. Because of the internationally recognized severity of this disease, this consensus conference was convened to bring together leading international experts to share ideas with regard to current research in the areas of alcohol dependency and treatment, and to discuss the future directions for the pharmacotherapy of alcoholism. The work presented at this conference points to a substantial evolution in the ability of researchers to understand the mechanism by which alcohol acts on the brain and reinforces the concept that alcoholism is a disease of brain chemistry, with a hereditary predisposition that is triggered by psychological and/or environmental factors that are thus far unidentified. The consensus statements proposed by the participants at the close of the conference highlight the definition, etiology, and prevention of alcoholism, as well as current and potential treatments and recommendations that can be used to guide future pharmacologic research.