The author studied the relationship between alcohol ingestion and the incidence of injury in a group of 622 patients treated in the Emergency Room of an Army hospital. The specific study findings were that: (1) The incidence of alcohol use among US Army personnel presenting to the Emergency Room of US Army Hospital, Nuernberg, was found to be 27 per cent; and (2) there was a distinct and significant positive relationship between alcohol use and an increased risk of presenting with accidental injury. A third conclusion that can be supported by the study findings is that breath alcohol levels, as measured herein, are a reliable and valid proxy measure of blood alcohol levels.