The search for a biochemical marker in alcoholism.

A diagnostic aid using routinely available blood chemistry batteries is being developed which shows promise for use in identification of individuals with drinking problems as well as in individuals having alcoholic and nonalcoholic liver disease. A statistically complex form of pattern recognition known as quadratic discriminant analysis is performed on common clinical laboratory tests such as total protein, total bilirubin, phosphorus, chloride, carbon dioxide, glucose, WBCs, RBCs, and MCV values. The relationship of each of the tests to each other is analyzed, providing a type of biochemical "fingerprint," such that any one test may not be unique. Rather, the interrelationships to one another provide a unique statistical profile of an alcoholic, or an individual with alcoholic or nonalcoholic liver disease.