Alcoholics Risk Infection after Heart Surgery
29th Sep 2005, 18:58 GMT
According to a new study, patients with long-standing alcoholism who undergo heart surgery are four times more likely to develop an infection after the operation than non-alcoholic surgery patients. The research, published in the September issue of the journal Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research , suggest that the increased risk may be associated with increased levels of two immune factors, interleukin-10, an anti-inflammation protein, as well as the steroid hormone cortisol. Read Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments