Citation

Westenbrink W. J. Can. Soc. Forensic Sci. 1995; 28(2): 165-170.

Copyright

(Copyright © 1995, Canadian Society of Forensic Science, Publisher Informa - Taylor and Francis Group)

DOI

10.1080/00085030.1995.10757480

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

Controversy as to whether or not Cimetidine and other H2-receptor antagonists are capable of raising an individual's Blood Alcohol Concentration (BAC) has surfaced in the scientific literature in the recent past. This effect of Cimetidine has been attributed to the inhibition of Alcohol Dehydrogenase (ADH) in the stomach, the site where some authors believe significant "first pass metabolism" of ethyl alcohol takes place. The possibility of increasing an individual's BAC has forensic implications particularly in impaired driving cases. A review of one such case is described together with a brief scientific overview of the effects of Cimetidine on the blood alcohol curve.