Inpatient Management of Alcohol Withdrawal and Medications for Alcohol Use Disorder

When withdrawal strikes on the ward, precision matters. Through a focused inpatient case, you'll recognize high-risk patients, describe withdrawal pathophysiology, and review benzodiazepines, phenobarbital, dexmedetomidine, and ketamine. Then discuss gabapentin/anticonvulsants, apply front-loading, symptom-triggered and fixed-schedule dosing, assess withdrawal scales, weigh IV vs oral thiamine, and evaluate AUD medications via the 2023 JAMA meta-analysis for safer care.

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Availability

On-Demand

Expires on Apr 30, 2027

Cost

Member: $0.00

Non-Member: $55.00

Credit Offered

0.75 CME Credit

0.75 ABIM-MOC Point

0.75 Participation Credit

Overview
Faculty
Accreditation
Recommended

Learning Objectives
After completing this activity, learners should be able to:

Recognize which patients are at highest risk of developing severe alcohol withdrawal.
Describe the pathophysiology of alcohol withdrawal and why benzodiazepines are currently the first line treatment, despite increasing trends to use phenobarbital, propofol, and dexmedetomidine.
Describe the concepts of front loading, symptom-triggered dosing, and fixed-scheduled dosing for alcohol withdrawal.
Describe commonly prescribed medications for alcohol use disorder and their efficacy.

Faculty

Susan Calcaterra, MD, MPH

Faculty Disclosures
The individuals in control of content for this activity have no relevant relationships with ACCME-defined ineligible companies to disclose unless listed here. Any relevant relationships were mitigated prior to the start of this activity.

Accreditation Statement
The Society of Hospital Medicine is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME) to provide continuing medical education for physicians.

CME Credit Statement
The Society of Hospital Medicine designates this enduring material for a maximum of 0.75 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit(s)^TM. Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.

MOC Credit Statement
Successful completion of this CME activity, which includes participation in the evaluation component, enables the participant to earn up to 0.75 MOC points in the American Board of Internal Medicine's (ABIM) Maintenance of Certification (MOC) program. Participants will earn MOC points equivalent to the amount of CME credits claimed for the activity. It is the CME activity provider's responsibility to submit participant completion information to ACCME for the purpose of granting ABIM MOC credit.

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