R. Anton
Jul 1, 2014
Citations
0
Influential Citations
8
Citations
Journal
Alcoholism, clinical and experimental research
Abstract
In this issue, Jatlow and colleagues have provided the field with the report of a well done and timely scientific evaluation of one of the newer alcohol consumption biomarkers, urinary ethylglucuronide (EtG), and a related metabolite, ethylsulfate (EtS). These naturally occurring chemical conjugates between ethanol and glucuronide (EtG) or sulfate (EtS), while elegant in their simplicity, have caused a certain amount of discussion and controversy not only in the literature, but also in clinical practice (Center for Substance Abuse Treatment, 2012; Litten et al., 2010). EtG and EtS have been around for some time (Wurst et al., 2003), but highly structured investigations into their interpretation and utility have been few (Wurst et al., 2004, Hoiseth et. al., 2012). The concerns which have haunted both investigators and clinicians alike, and which have spilled over into forensic circles, involve cut-off levels, windows of detection of alcohol consumption, sensitivity and specificity of measurement, and the potential for use for monitoring abstinence in clinical practice and in clinical trials. In this paper, the authors have provided crucial information that increases the knowledge in most of these areas.