The effects of polyunsaturated fatty acids in alcohol dependence treatment - a double-blind, placebo-controlled pilot study

This was a placebo controlled, double blind, randomized study where, 80 alcohol dependent patients, according to DSM-IV, were allocated in four groups with 20 patient each: 'PUFAS', 'Naltrexone', 'Naltrexone + PUFAS' and 'Placebo'. Those substances were administered for 90 days and scales were applied to assess patients craving (OCDS) and alcohol dependence severity (SADD) at baseline and after 90 days. PUFAS serum levels were assessed before and after treatment by high performance liquid chromatography assay.Forty-three patients completed the trial. There was a significant improvement over time on drinking days, SADD and OCDS scores in all groups (p < 0.001). The drinking days comparison between groups did not show statistical significant difference. The same effect was observed for compulsion (OCDS) and severity of dependence scale (SADD). The serum levels of PUFAS increased in all the supplemented groups after treatment, although not significantly.The oral supplementation of 2 g PUFAS for 3 months did not significantly differ from placebo in reducing the amount of alcohol ingestion, or OCDS and SADD scores in a group of alcohol dependent patient.NCT01211769Polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAS) are unsaturated fatty acids whose carbon chain has more than one double bond per molecule. Of those, omega-3 (n-3) and omega-6 (n-6) are known as "essential" fatty acids, as humans are unable to synthesize them.The n-3 series are derived from alpha-linolenic acid (ALA) and the n-6 series, from linoleic acid (LA). The main ALA derivates are eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA). Gamma linolenic acid (GLA), dihomogamma linolenic acid (DGLA) and arachidonic acid (AA) are the main LA products. GLA is produced from LA by the enzyme delta-6-desaturase and is further metabolized to DGLA. A small amount of DGLA can also be converted to AA by the enzyme delta-5-desaturase. Human conversion of ALA and LA to their derivates is limited, and the existence of them depe