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A 47-year-old man is admitted for elective inguinal hernia repair. Taking the substance use history, the intern records 12 standard drinks a day for the past 20 years, a first drink every morning to steady his hands, and one hospital admission four years ago during which he had a seizure two days after his last drink. He is not tremulous now and his last drink was this morning. Liver function tests are normal apart from a gamma-glutamyl transferase of 210 U/L (<60). Which one of the following parts of his history should most influence the intensity of the withdrawal monitoring planned for him?
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