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Evaluating a Digital Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Hazardous Alcohol Use: A Pilot Study in South Korea

Not Applicable
Completed
Conditions
Hazardous Alcohol Use
High-risk Drinkers
Interventions
Device: SOBER, mobile Application providing digital CBT
Registration Number
NCT06502756
Lead Sponsor
Yonsei University
Brief Summary

The goal of this single arm pilot study is to investigate the feasibility, acceptability and preliminary effectiveness of the mobile app SOBER; for reducing and preventing hazardous alcohol drinking.

The main questions it aims to answer are:

* Feasibility: How well participants adhere to the app's lessons?

* Acceptability: Participants\' satisfaction with and perceived usefulness of the app.

* Preliminary Effectiveness: The number of days participants remain abstinent.

Participants will:

* Use the mobile application SOBER, which delivers digital cognitive behavioral therapy, for four weeks.

* Wear a smartwatch to collect biometric data throughout the study.

* Visit the clinic three times: at baseline (V1), two weeks after the initial visit (V2), and four weeks after the initial visit (V3).

* Be evaluated using various questionnaires about their alcohol consumption, mood, and stress levels at each visit.

* Receive psychiatric consultation with a board-certified psychiatrist regarding their alcohol consumption, based on the data entered into the mobile app.

Detailed Description

Not available

Recruitment & Eligibility

Status
COMPLETED
Sex
All
Target Recruitment
17
Inclusion Criteria
  • Individuals aged between 19 and 65 years.
  • Individuals classified as high-risk drinkers (hazardous drinking): Alcohol Use Disorder Identification Test (AUDIT) score of 8 or higher
  • Individuals who have been admitted for treatment of alcohol use disorder no more than once.
  • Individuals who are assessed to have completed detoxification treatment for alcohol.
  • Individuals who own a smartphone and can independently use apps on the smartphone.
  • Individuals who voluntarily agree to participate in this clinical study and have signed the consent form (or whose representative has signed the consent form).
Exclusion Criteria
  • individuals with active and progressive physical illnesses or a life expectancy of less than 6 months
  • individuals with major psychiatric comorbidities such as schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, or major depressive disorder
  • pregnant women or those planning to become pregnant during the study
  • individuals who had participated in another clinical study within four weeks prior to the screening for this study

Study & Design

Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Study Design
SINGLE_GROUP
Arm && Interventions
GroupInterventionDescription
mobile application SOBER (digital cognitive behavioral therapy)SOBER, mobile Application providing digital CBTParticipants in this group will access to the mobile app SOBER for 4 weeks. Sober is designed to provide digitalized brief-intervention and cognitive CBT-based education for high-risk drinkers. Participants are expected to engage with the app, completing tasks such as self-monitoring (daily log function that instructs participants to record their alcohol consumption, along with changes in mood, appetite and sleep quality). The app will collect data on adherence, including diary completion rates and app login frequency. Participants were also provided with a smart watch to collect biometric data throughout the duration of the study.
Primary Outcome Measures
NameTimeMethod
Study completion rateFrom enrollment to the end of treatment at 4 weeks

The feasibility of the intervention was assessed based on the completion rates of the study

Preliminary Effectivenessasked at baseline (V1), two weeks (V2), and four weeks (V3).

days abstinent (%) in the past two weeks

Adherence rateFrom enrollment to the end of treatment at 4 weeks

The adherence rate of educational sessions in the application

AcceptabilityIn the end of treatment at 4 weeks

assessed through participant satisfaction and perceived usefulness of the app, evaluated using a Likert-scale.

Participants were asked to rate their satisfaction with the app on a scale from 0 (Not satisfied at all) to 5 (Very satisfied); and usefulness of the app from 0 (Not useful at all) to 5 (Very useful).

Secondary Outcome Measures
NameTimeMethod
Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9)Administered at baseline (V1), two weeks (V2), and four weeks (V3).

The PHQ-9 is a 9-item self-administered scale for assessing the severity of depression. Score Range: 0-27. : Higher scores indicate more severe depression. Scores of 10 or above suggest the need for treatment of depression.

Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT) ScoreAdministered at baseline (V1), two weeks (V2), and four weeks (V3).

The AUDIT is a 10-item questionnaire designed to assess alcohol consumption, drinking behaviors, and alcohol-related problems. Higher scores indicate more severe alcohol-related issues. A score of 8 or above suggests hazardous or harmful alcohol use. Score Range: 0-40

Generalized Anxiety Disorder 7-item Scale (GAD-7)Administered at baseline (V1), two weeks (V2), and four weeks (V3).

The GAD-7 is a 7-item self-report scale for identifying probable cases of generalized anxiety disorder and assessing its severity. Score Range: 0-21. Higher scores indicate more severe anxiety. Scores of 10 or above suggest the presence of generalized anxiety disorder.

Perceived Stress Scale (PSS)Administered at baseline (V1), two weeks (V2), and four weeks (V3).

The PSS is a 10-item questionnaire measuring the perception of stress. Score Range: 0-40. Higher scores indicate higher perceived stress levels. There are no specific cut-off scores; rather, scores indicate the relative level of stress perceived by the individual

Clinical Institute Withdrawal Assessment for Alcohol Scale (CIWA-Ar)Administered at baseline (V1), two weeks (V2), and four weeks (V3).

The CIWA-Ar is a 10-item scale used to assess the severity of alcohol withdrawal symptoms. Score Range: 0-67. Higher scores indicate more severe withdrawal symptoms. Scores of 10 or above indicate the need for medical intervention.

Trial Locations

Locations (1)

Severance Hospital

🇰🇷

Seoul, Korea, Republic of

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