According to a recent study by National Institutes of Health researchers and their collaborators, a medication used to treat high blood pressure and heart problems may also be effective in treating alcohol use disorder.

In the publication, convergent evidence from investigations in mice and rats, as well as from a cohort study in humans, is presented to support the hypothesis that the medicine spironolactone may assist individuals in reducing their alcohol use. The study was published in Molecular Psychiatry.

A preclinical investigation suggests increased mineralocorticoid receptor signaling contributes to excess alcohol consumption. The current study used spironolactone, which has several effects, including blocking mineralocorticoid receptors. It is a diuretic prescribed in medical settings to treat conditions like heart disease and high blood pressure. Increasing spironolactone dosages were found to decrease alcohol intake in both male and female animals without altering their ability to move or coordinate and how much food or water they ingested.

The researchers also evaluated the health records of a substantial sample of patients from the U.S. Veterans Affairs healthcare system in a separate study to analyze potential changes in alcohol use after spironolactone was administered for its current clinical indications. A strong link was revealed between the spironolactone therapy and a drop in self-reported alcohol consumption from the screening instrument Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test.

The maximum improvements were shown in people who admitted to risky/heavy episodic alcohol use before starting the spironolactone treatment. Thus, these findings promote additional research into spironolactone as a potential treatment for alcohol use disorder, a disease that affects millions of people. (The Print, 20 September, 2022) https://theprint.in/health/research-potential-cure-for-alcohol-use-disorder-is-heart-medication/1135389/