Whereas in Germany clomethiazol has been the standard treatment for alcohol withdrawal, in the U.S. benzodiazepine treatment is used as the standard treatment. Recently there has been some discussion if the standard treatment in Germany should be reconsidered. Up to now there is no study giving a valid argument for this change, but there are clinical observations favouring benzodiazepines. In a retrospective study we are evaluating around 800 inpatient alcohol withdrawals in the last two years in order to give better evidence on which medication to choose and to establish a therapeutic regimen apart from the "intuitive" medication.. About 80% of the patients received clomethiazol as a withdrawal medication, while the rest received either diazepam or oxazepam, usually in case of a contraindication for clomethiazol (e.g. pulmonary disorders). Preliminary results show that benzodiazepines have equal effectiveness and tolerability, despite the negative selection of the subsample.