When metabolites were evaluated as a function of the likelihood of relapse, only patients that relapsed within 3 weeks of detoxification revealed reduced cerebellar NAA concentrations (Parks et al., 2002). Similarly, in individuals that relapsed relative to those that remained abstinent, baseline compared to one-year follow-up levels of NAA and tCr were lower in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex and cerebellar vermis (Durazzo et al.). These longitudinal MRS studies thus also provide evidence for the role of a dysfunctional frontocerebellar circuit in the maintenance of addiction to alcohol.
