Alcoholism is unique

The recent meeting of the Scientific Group of the International Council on Alcoholism in Amsterdam, Holland, took up the important question of similarities and dissimilarities between dependence on alcohol and dependence on drugs. The importance of this move is underscored by the position taken by the World Health Organization. WHO has proposed a joint approach to alcoholism and other drug abuse and has delineated the syndromes of abuse. In that delineation, one subcategory is drug dependence, alcohol type.