| Abstract [eng] |
Alcohol hangover is defined as unpleasant mental and physical symptoms that can occur after a single episode of drinking, when blood alcohol concentration approaches zero. Hangovers are characterized by a range of physical, psychological, and cognitive symptoms. The severity of a hangover is influenced by a variety of factors, including personal characteristics of the user, the characteristics of the alcohol consumed, and other factors related to alcohol consumption, especially the severity of alcohol intoxication. Although the socio-economic burden of hangovers is enormous - hangovers lead to disruption of daily activities, absenteeism, and loss of productivity – there is still no approved safe and effective treatment for this condition, partly because the pathophysiology of hangovers is still not fully understood. The current consensus is that ethanol metabolism, the reactive oxygen species it produces, and the toxic properties of acetaldehyde, the main metabolite of ethanol, are important in the pathophysiology of hangovers. Acetaldehyde forms toxic adducts with various proteins in the body and interfere with their physiological functions, leading to the formation of oxidative stress, which in turn leads to the development of a systemic inflammatory response. Ethanol easily crosses various biological membranes, including the blood-brain barrier, thus oxidative stress and inflammation also occur in the brain, leading to mitochondrial damage and cell apoptosis. Ethanol also interacts with various neurotransmitter systems, disrupting the balance between inhibitory and excitatory neurotransmitters. All of these processes play an important role in the pathophysiology of alcohol hangover. |
