The Efficacy Of Clonidine In The Pharmacological Management Of Alcohol Withdrawal Syndrome: Preliminary Results

Alcohol dependence and harmful use represent the most prevalent addictive disorder worldwide. Alcohol withdrawal syndrome is considered a life-threatening condition by inducing severe physiological imbalances. Pharmacological management of alcohol withdrawal syndrome is very complex and challenging, often involving a long duration in getting remission. Our ongoing study aimed to analyse the efficacy of clonidine (an alpha-2-agonist) for improving alcohol withdrawal syndrome quantified by the mean change of The Clinical Institute Withdrawal Assessment of Alcohol Scale, Revised (CIWA-Ar) scores. Of 30 patients with alcohol withdrawal syndrome recruited so far, 11 (36.7%) benefited from clonidine treatment. Blood pressure and other physiological signs were periodically monitored. Although at the beginning of the treatment there were no differences between the mean CIWA-Ar scores (t = 0.352, p = 0.599), after 5 days the difference became significant in favour of those treated with clonidine (t = 3.147, p = 0.004). Clonidine may provide additional benefit in managing alcohol withdrawal by offering a different mechanism of action for targeting withdrawal symptoms.