TY - JOUR T1 - Alcoholic ketoacidosis JF - Emergency Medicine Journal JO - Emerg Med J SP - 417 LP - 420 DO - 10.1136/emj.2004.017590 VL - 23 IS - 6 AU - L C McGuire AU - A M Cruickshank AU - P T Munro Y1 - 2006/06/01 UR - http://emj.bmj.com/content/23/6/417.abstract N2 - Alcoholic ketoacidosis (AKA) is a common reason for investigation and admission of alcohol dependent patients in UK emergency departments. Although well described in international emergency medicine literature, UK emergency physicians rarely make the diagnosis of AKA. There is increasing evidence that rather than being benign and self limiting, AKA may be a significant cause of mortality in patients with alcohol dependence. This literature review discusses the history, characterisation, pathophysiology, diagnosis, and management of AKA. ER -