DeKALB | After a night of heavy drinking, some people pass out and wake up with a miserable hangover, not knowing when (or how) they got into bed.

Sometimes, however, drinkers end up in the hospital as a result of their over-consumption.

In the last three years in DeKalb, the rate of 18- to 24-year-olds with alcohol consumption – a term used for a drinking-related incident – has remained more than 100 per year. One hundred five people in 2004, 181 in 2005 and 150 in 2006 were treated for alcohol consumption, according to Kishwaukee Community Hospital records.

“You, as the person doing the consumption, probably wouldn’t know that you are reaching that point, which is part of what makes it so scary,” said Cindy Graves, director of Emergency Services at Kishwaukee Community Hospital.

When it comes to alcohol consumption, no single blood-alcohol level indicates when person has reached a dangerous point, Graves said. It’s not really the number – it’s how the patient responds.

When a patient arrives, the first concern to emergency room attendants is the patient’s airway. When someone is severely drunk and vomiting, they might be unable to even turn their head to prevent choking.

“If you can’t breathe, you can’t live, so that’s always our major concern,” Graves said. “Many times, when people come in who are severely drunk, they are unable to protect their airway.”

In such a case, medical professionals may be forced to intibate – put a tube down the throat to help the patient breathe – until some of the alcohol wears off.

Alcohol can slow breathing to the point of stopping, so it’s not uncommon for emergency room personnel to closely watch the patient. The patient could basically forget to breathe, Graves said.

Another concern with patients is alcohol poisoning. As with a drug overdose, a tube is often put into the patient’s stomach to pump out the contents. Also, activated charcoal may be used to help pull out all the alcohol and help keep more alcohol from being absorbed into the system.

This spring, NIU Health Enhancement will survey students on their drinking habits to come up with data on resources that would benefit students, said Steve Lux, health educator with Health Enhancement. The last time the survey was conducted was in 2002.

“Our goal is to reduce harm associated with risky drinking, and those are the measures the survey will try and look at,” Lux said. “There are a lot of people whose interests lie in getting people to not drink. That’s not the goal of a health program like ours. Our goal is to improve safety and reduce interference with students’ academics.”