Critically ill patients who abuse alcohol had a twofold greater risk of developing acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS).

Alcohol abusers were found to have a close to twofold increased odds of developing ARDS, according to a review and meta-analysis.

As reported in Chest, a meta-analysis of 13 studies showed that any measure of high relative to low alcohol consumption was associated with a significantly increased risk of developing ARDS (OR 1.89, 95% CI 1.45-2.48).

Sensitivity analyses indicated that this association was attributable primarily to an effect of a history of alcohol abuse.

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