Carbohydrate-deficient transferrin levels reflect heavy drinking in alcohol-dependent women seeking treatment.

Background: Carbohydrate-deficient transferrin (CDT) is a biochemical marker that has been shown to be sensitive in detecting heavy drinking in men, but studies examining CDT in women have been inconsistent because of small sample sizes and failure to consider hormonal status. In healthy female subjects, CDT levels are significantly higher in premenopausal women with higher estradiol (E2) levels (>30 pg/ml) and those taking exogenous estrogens (oral contraceptives, hormone replacement therapy) compared with men and postmenopausal women. This study examined the relationship between drinking behavior and CDT levels in a large sample of alcohol-dependent women and contrasted findings in a comparison group of alcohol-dependent men. The study also examined the extent that E2 levels mediated the relationship between CDT levels and heavy drinking in the alcohol-dependent women.

Methods: This study examined the association between CDT level at treatment entry and alcohol consumption the month before initiating treatment in 96 women with a DSM-III-R diagnosis of alcohol dependence, as compared with similar data in 123 male alcoholics. To explore the relationship between E2 and CDT, E2 was measured in women at the time of CDT sampling. Linear regression was used to examine whether patterns of alcohol consumption in the 28 days before the CDT blood sampling predicted the CDT level in women and men presenting for treatment for alcohol dependence.

Results: CDT levels were higher in women than men and were related to quantitative alcohol consumption (total standard drinks, percentage of days drinking, percentage of days of heavy drinking) in the month before initiating treatment, irrespective of E2 levels in women.

Conclusions: These results suggest that in a larger sample of female alcoholics, the amount of alcohol consumed predicted CDT, similar to what has been reported in male alcoholics. The E2 status did not seem to mediate these results.