PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Paul J. Perry
AU  - Shadi Doroudgar
AU  - Priscilla Van Dyke
TI  - Ethanol Forensic Toxicology
DP  - 2017 Dec 01
TA  - Journal of the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law Online
PG  - 429--438
VI  - 45
IP  - 4
4099  - http://jaapl.org/content/45/4/429.short
4100  - http://jaapl.org/content/45/4/429.full
SO  - J Am Acad Psychiatry Law2017 Dec 01; 45
AB  - Ethanol abuse can lead to negative consequences that oftentimes result in criminal charges and civil lawsuits. When an individual is suspected of driving under the influence, law enforcement agents can determine the extent of intoxication by measuring the blood alcohol concentration (BAC) and performing a standardized field sobriety test. The BAC is dependent on rates of absorption, distribution, and elimination, which are influenced mostly by the dose of ethanol ingested and rate of consumption. Other factors contributing to BAC are gender, body mass and composition, food effects, type of alcohol, and chronic alcohol exposure. Because of individual variability in ethanol pharmacology and toxicology, careful extrapolation and interpretation of the BAC is needed, to justify an arrest and assignment of criminal liability. This review provides a summary of the pharmacokinetic properties of ethanol and the clinical effects of acute intoxication as they relate to common forensic questions. Concerns regarding the extrapolation of BAC and the implications of impaired memory caused by alcohol-induced blackouts are discussed.