Network Support for Treatment of Alcohol Dependence

UConn Health

Status: Completed

Conditions: Alcohol Dependence

Treatments: Behavioral: Network Support

Study type: Interventional

Funder types: Other; NIH

Identifiers

NCT00845208

R01AA012827 (U.S. NIH Grant/Contract)

1R01AA012827 (U.S. NIH Grant/Contract)

AA12827

Details and patient eligibility

About

Relapse is the most serious problem in alcoholism treatment. The overall aim of the present study was to determine if a treatment directed at changing the patient's social network, from one that reinforces drinking behavior to one that reinforces sobriety, can create the conditions necessary for long-term treatment success. In addition, we intended to determine if explicit reinforcement for this change of social network (Contingency Management or ContM) would be more effective than the same network support intervention without contingent reinforcement for change.

Enrollment: 210 patients

Sex: All

Ages: 18+ years old

Volunteers: Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

• meet DSM-IV criteria for Alcohol Dependence
• at least 18 years old
• Willing to accept random assignment to treatment conditions

Exclusion criteria

• acute medical or psychiatric problems that require inpatient treatment
• reading ability below the fifth grade level
• lack of reliable transportation to the treatment site
• excessive commuting distance to site
• current dependence on drugs (except marijuana)

Trial design

Primary purpose: Treatment

Allocation: Randomized

Interventional model: Parallel Assignment

Masking: None (Open label)

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210 participants in 3 patient groups

Case Management

Active Comparator group

Treatment:

Behavioral: Network Support

Network Support

Experimental group

Description:

12 Weekly sessions intended to help patients change their social networks to be more supportive of abstinence

Treatment:

Behavioral: Network Support

Network Support + Contingency Mgmnt

Experimental group

Description:

12 weekly sessions intended to help patients change their social networks to be more supportive of abstinence. Contingency management component added to reinforce efforts to make network changes.

Treatment:

Behavioral: Network Support