White matter aberrancies were related to drinking in a dose-dependent manner. Higher estimations of peak blood alcohol concentrations were linked to poorer fiber tract quality in the corpus callosum, internal/external capsules, and posterior corona radiata. Further, teens reporting multiple hangover symptoms showed more compromised white matter in the body and genu of the corpus callosum, frontal lobe projection fibers (anterior corona radiata), and cerebellar tracts (inferior peduncle). This finding linking postdrinking effects to worse integrity is consistent with white matter deficits observed in adults with histories of alcohol withdrawal seizures (Sullivan et al., 1996). These relationships suggest that high-dose alcohol consumption, to the extent that hangover symptomatology arises, may index adverse influences on white matter caliber, particularly since associations were not observed for drinking frequency or duration. It is also possible that hangover may be more accurately recalled than other aspects of alcohol involvement.
