While we have shown the theta ERS effect in two independent groups of LTAA, this does not establish that the effect reflects a morbid effect of alcoholism on brain function that at least partially persists into long-term abstinence. The present study compared evoked and induced theta activity in a group of alcoholics who just recently initiated abstinence from alcohol (between 6- and 15-week abstinent; referred to as short-term abstinent alcoholics, STAA) to the LTAA (>18-month abstinent) and nonalcoholic control (NAC) groups from Gilmore and Fein (2012). If the magnitude of the theta ERS decreases as a function of length of abstinence with no other concomitant differences between groups (e.g., in severity of alcohol use or in family history density of alcohol problems), it would lend more evidence to the assertion that increased theta ERS is a biomarker for an effect of alcohol use/abuse on the brain, and that this effect at least partially resolves with extended abstinence. We hypothesized that (1) evoked theta power would be reduced to the same degree in both STAA and LTAA compared with NAC, given
