Lymphopenia in heavy drinkers--reversibility and relation to the duration of drinking episodes.

Seventy-four addictive alcoholic subjects were investigated shortly after a period of excessive drinking and were compared with 18 alcoholic subjects who had not been drinking for at least six months. No difference was observed in total white cell count or number of circulating granulocytes. Lymphocyte count was significantly lower in alcoholics whose last alcoholic bout had been three months or more, but after 30 days of abstinence the difference had disappeared. The depressed lymphocyte count did not correlate with other components of the drinking pattern. These results show that lymphopenia in alcoholics is a time-dependent and reversible event.