View clinical trials related to Alcoholism.
Filter by:The objective of this research project is to develop, evaluate, and disseminate an Internet-based (web) application for SMART Recovery: Overcoming Addictions (OA). OA will be based on the four point cognitive-behavioral program for SMART Recovery (www.smartrecovery.org). The goal of the OA program is to help users learn cognitive and behavioral skills to abstain from drinking, drug use, and problem gambling. The investigators will evaluate the effectiveness of the OA web application for heavy drinkers in a randomized clinical trial (RCT) with follow-ups at 3- and 6-months. The study design has three conditions: 1) participation in face-to-face SMART Recovery meetings alone; 2) use of the OA web application as a stand-alone intervention; and 3) combining the OA web application with participation in face-to-face SMART Recovery meetings. Study Hypotheses: 1. All three groups will reduce their alcohol consumption, drug use (if any), and alcohol/drug-related problems relative to their baseline levels at the 3- and 6-month post-baseline assessments. 2. The OA only group (Experimental group 1) will show a greater reductions in drinking, drug use (if any), and alcohol/drug-related problems relative to the face-to-face only (Control) group. 3. The OA + face-to-face group (Experimental group 2) will have better outcomes on drinking and drug use variables compared to the Control group.
This study tests the effectiveness of Making Alcoholics Anonymous Easier (MAAEZ), a manual-guided intervention designed to help alcohol and drug dependent clients connect with individuals encountered in AA. An OFF/ON design was used (n=508). MAAEZ effectiveness was determined by comparing abstinence rates of participants recruited during ON (MAAEZ intervention) and OFF (usual care) conditions and by studying the effect of the number of MAAEZ sessions attended. Better outcomes were hypothesized for MAAEZ vs. usual care. At 12 months, more clients in the ON condition (vs. OFF) reported past 30-day abstinence from alcohol, drugs, and both alcohol and drugs. Abstinence increased for each additional MAAEZ session received. MAAEZ appeared especially effective for those with more prior AA exposure, severe psychiatric problems, and atheists/agnostics. Mechanisms of action for MAAEZ (mediators of the MAAEZ effect) include: doing service in AA/NA/CA; having a sponsor; having a social network supportive of abstinence; and comfort being in meetings. MAAEZ represents an evidence-based intervention that is easily implemented in existing treatment programs.
The aim of the study is to assess the safety and tolerability of GSK1521498 in combination with alcohol and to determine the amount of GSK1521498 and alcohol in your blood after you have been given these together. The study will also determine whether GSK1521498 will have an effect on alcohol liking and consumption.
Alcohol dependence is a significant and prevalent public health problem affecting approximately 4% of the U.S. adult population. Individuals with alcohol dependence actively seek treatment annually, and long-term alcohol abstinence varies from 40-60%. Because of the high smoking prevalence and trends toward heavier smoking, alcoholic smokers are at high risk for both morbidity and mortality related to alcohol consumption and tobacco dependence. Although several studies have evaluated pharmacotherapy for tobacco dependence in recovering alcoholic smokers, few have evaluated pharmacotherapy for tobacco dependence among currently drinking alcoholic smokers. Varenicline is the most effective medication currently available for treating tobacco dependence. While some randomized trials have included recovering alcoholics, active alcoholism has been an exclusion criteria for these trials. Thus, this proposal would be the first such clinical trial in currently drinking alcoholic smokers. In addition to helping smokers to stop smoking, varenicline has also been shown to reduce alcohol consumption in rats. The goal of this proposal is to explore the potential efficacy of varenicline for treating tobacco dependence and reducing drinking among alcohol dependent smokers. The investigators hypothesize that 12 weeks of treatment with varenicline, a partial nicotinic acetylcholine receptor agonist will be more effective than placebo in treating tobacco dependence and reducing nicotine withdrawal symptoms in currently drinking alcoholic smokers. The investigators will also explore whether varenicline has an effect on drinking behavior among currently drinking alcoholics. The investigators propose the following specific aims to test these hypotheses in 70 currently drinking alcoholic smokers recruited at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota.
The purpose of this research study is to understand the effectiveness of valproate (a common mood stabilizer) to further reduce alcohol misuse when given in addition to attending an alcohol rehabilitation program as well as the treatment of mood disorders or PTSD. The main goal of this project is to understand if people receiving valproate will have a better recovery than people receiving the standard treatment for alcohol dependence: naltrexone.
The overall goals of this study are to (1) expand knowledge about interactions of chlorzoxazone with alcohol by assessing the effects of chlorzoxazone compared to placebo in moderate and heavy social alcohol users and (2) to compare the effects of chlorzoxazone on visual cue induced alcohol craving to placebo in moderate to heavy social alcohol users.
In comparison to the general population, U.S. military and Veterans are at an increased risk for developing both substance use disorders (SUD) and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). Current research has shown that there is a high comorbidity of SUD and PTSD, and although there are a number of treatments for SUD and PTSD independently, there are very few effective methods to simultaneously treat both disorders. Because of this substantial gap in the treatment of both SUDs and PTSD, it has become essential to develop a combined treatment that would address and treat both disorders. Individuals, specifically U.S. military and Veterans, with SUD/PTSD have unique needs that require a specialized treatment approach. This designed approach would employ cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) to treat the SUD, in conjunction with Prolonged Exposure therapy to treat the PTSD. Prolonged Exposure (PE) is an empirically supported and evidence-based treatment that is currently regarded as the "gold standard" psychosocial treatment for PTSD. In combination with CBT, this treatment would address both disorders in hopes of reducing substance use and PTSD symptomatology.
Alcohol dependency is the most frequent addiction leading to a massive burden of both, patients health, and economy. Present therapeutic concepts suffer from limited efficacy, and thus new innovative therapies are needed. Neuroscientific studies have shown that prefrontal function in alcohol-dependent patients is impaired, leading to cognitive disturbances, and continuation of dependent behaviour. The results of pilot studies demonstrate that activation of prefrontal cortices via non-invasive brain stimulation improves cognitive performance in healthy subjects, and diminishes dependency-related behaviour in patients. The investigators aim to develop a stimulation protocol suited to induce a clinically relevant improvement of prefrontal functions in patients suffering from alcohol dependency. Therefore, the investigators will develop stimulation protocols which are able to modulate prefrontal activation for a much longer time course than those currently available, and will explore if the induced physiological alterations translate to respective cognitive improvements and reduction of addictive behaviour.
Many people suffering from alcohol dependence have a history of exposure to stressful life situations, such as childhood physical or emotional misuse. Often, there's a functional relationship between drinking and emotional problems related to past traumatic experiences, i.e. drinking to forget. However, alcohol treatment often does not include interventions to support patients to cope better with past life experiences. On the other hand, most alcoholics are poorly motivated to participate in long-term rehabilitative treatments after detoxification. In the proposed study, the investigators will study the effects of a brief psycho-educational group intervention during detoxification treatment on motivation to change and the willingness to accept further treatment. The investigators will use a group comparison design (intervention versus "TAS" control group). In month 1, patients take part in Treatment as Usual (TAS), including a unspecific information group. In month 2, the information group is replaced by the psychoeducational group (intervention). Ward staff selects patients for the groups, irrespective of intervention or TAS. Selection criteria are: absence of severe withdrawal and cognitive impairment. Absence of severe co-morbid psychiatric disorder (e.g. schizophrenia or suicidal crisis). The group sessions will take place in groups of up to 15 patients and will include 4 structured sessions (45 min each). Main content if the intervention group is to highlight and discuss the association between stress, Posttraumatic Stress Disorder and drinking. Patients will also be informed about the different treatment options available in the region. At entry, patients are asked to fill in the German versions of the University of Rhode Island Change Assessment (URICA; McConnaughy, Prochaska, & Velicer, 1983; German: Heidenreich, Hoyer & Fecht; 2001) and the Trauma History Questionnaire (THQ; Green, 1996; German: Maercker, 2002). At discharge, patients are asked to fill in the URICA. The investigators expect that specific information on the association between stress and drinking will increase the patients' motivation to participate in further treatment.
The purpose of this study is to determine whether drug-dependent adults who participate in a dual processing relapse prevention treatment protocol that allows for sensory-based exposure experiences over 10-weeks in outpatient treatment will show significant brain change related to diminished cue reactivity, and greater improvement in self-efficacy, anxiety, somatization, and treatment retention, as compared to the standard care patients in a relapse prevention program.