Short answers, pulled from the story.
Alcoholism is the continued drinking of alcohol despite the problems it causes. Clinically, it is classified as alcohol use disorder in the DSM-5 or alcohol dependence in the ICD-11. The term alcoholism is discouraged in clinical settings due to its stigmatizing connotations, with the WHO preferring alcohol dependence syndrome since 1979.
The World Health Organization estimates approximately 380 million people worldwide have alcoholism, representing about 5.1% of the global population over the age of fifteen. It is most common among males and young adults, and is least prevalent in Africa at 1.1% and highest in Eastern Europe at 11%.
Alcoholism reduces a person's life expectancy by around ten years. The most common cause of death in alcoholics is cardiovascular complications. Approximately 3-15% of chronic alcoholics die by suicide, and research has found that over 50% of all suicides are associated with alcohol or drug dependence.
Four medications are approved in the United States for treating alcoholism: acamprosate, two forms of naltrexone (daily oral tablet and monthly intramuscular injection), and disulfiram. Acamprosate reduces relapse risk by stabilizing altered brain chemistry, naltrexone blocks the pleasurable effects of alcohol, and disulfiram causes an unpleasant physical reaction when alcohol is consumed.
Alcohol withdrawal can be fatal because the brain adapts to heavy alcohol use by reducing inhibitory receptor activity, and abrupt cessation causes uncontrolled nerve firing. Symptoms can include life-threatening seizures, delirium tremens, and heart failure. A phenomenon called kindling means each successive withdrawal episode is more severe than the previous one.
Alcoholism is estimated to be 50-60% genetically determined. Having a parent or sibling with alcohol use disorder makes a person 3-4 times more likely to develop the condition. Key genes include ADH1B and ALDH2, which govern alcohol metabolism, and variants of the gene KLB, identified in a genome-wide study of more than 100,000 individuals, are strongly linked to alcohol consumption patterns.