 Alcohol is one of the most commonly abused drugs in the world. Up to 40 of medical and surgical patients have alcohol related problems, and alcohol use accounts for more than 10 of U.S. health care costs. In the intensive care unit ICU, patients with a history of alcohol abuse are common where their rates of mortality and ICU-related morbidity are significantly higher when compared to patients without a history of alcohol abuse. Though ICU patients are a heterogeneous group, Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome ARDS, a devastating form of acute lung injury, is one of the more frequent diagnoses among these critically ill patients. 