In Stockholm county, the incidences of hospitalizations for chronic pancreatitis, acute, nongallstone associated pancreatitis, and alcoholic liver disease peaked at 14.1, 40.1, and 24.3/100,000 population in 1974 for the first two conditions, and in 1979 for the last one. After the peaks, a steady decline was seen for each condition. Furthermore, the apparent national and Stockholm prevalence of chronic pancreatitis displayed a decline during 1971-1987. A concomitant decline in the Stockholm sales figures of distilled spirits from 9.2 to 5.4 1/person/yr was also observed, whereas the sales figures for wine and beer increased, leaving the overall alcohol purchase unchanged. Thus, the consumption of distilled spirits, but not that of wine and beer, appear as a risk factor for these diseases in Stockholm county.