In summary, results presented in this study support the proposition that increased theta band ERS is a biomarker for a morbid effect of alcohol use/abuse on the brain. A limitation of this study, however, is that only treated samples of abstinent alcoholics were examined. The number of alcoholics who have been in treatment or AA is only a small proportion – less than a quarter – of alcoholics in the general population (Fein and Landman 2005). Our current findings, then, cannot be generalized to the larger population of alcoholics. This limitation could be addressed by investigating the induced theta ERS effect in treatment naïve actively drinking alcoholics (TNAs), who make up the bulk of alcoholics in society. TNAs are not simply treated alcoholics observed early in the course of their illness, but rather comprise a separate population with less severe alcoholism (Fein and Landman 2005; Sclafani et al. 2008; Smith and Fein 2010; Fein and Andrew 2011). Studying TNA, then, will increase our understanding of the societal implications of theta ERS's role as a biomarker for alcohol abuse's effect on the brain.
