Medina et al. (2008). This study aimed to parse the relative impact of co-occurring behavioural disorders on differences between AU (defined as meeting AUD criteria; n = 14) and non-AU youth (n = 17), aged 15–17 years. This study observed significant group differences in prefrontal cortex (PFC) volume, although there were no significant group differences in overall brain volume. Rather, there were significant interactions between group and gender. Specifically, AU females had smaller PFC volumes and WM volumes than non-AU females, and AU males showed relatively larger PFC volumes and WM volumes than non-AU males. These data suggest that gender may moderate the impact of alcohol consumption on PFC development during adolescence, thus highlighting the importance of examining the effect of gender in adolescent AU and brain development.
