Hello doctor, My eldest son is 45 years old. For many years he has drunk heavily, but until seven weeks ago he had come off alcohol for around four years. His mother, who has died, had a history of manic depression. My son appears to have similar symptoms. For the past seven weeks, he has drunk bottles of whiskey, left the bottles around, been sick and will not help or look after himself. My other son and I have visited him frequently, but he is aggressive and appears to be on another planet. In the hope of getting help, we have made an appointment at his surgery (we will be there with him). The surgery has indicated that another route to follow is to call an ambulance. Would you please advise which route we should take and what happens in both routes. We do not want him to return to his flat right away, and he lives alone. We are at our wit's end to know what to do.
Hi. Thanks for your query. Sorry to hear about the suffering of your son. Your son is alcoholic with signs of alcohol intoxication (confusion, irritability, and aggressiveness). Alcohol in excessive amounts causes depleted thiamine and glucose in the blood which causes severe symptoms. My advice is to call the ambulance and bring him to the emergency room for immediate treatment. Gastritis is a common issue in alcoholics, has he vomited blood? It is my honor to follow up his case and provide the second opinion whenever it requires. Please do not hesitate to contact me for further help. For more information consult an internal medicine physician online -->