Text Messaging to Reduce High-risk Alcohol Use Among Older Adults
ConditionHazardous Alcohol Use
Trial statusRecruiting
Trial phaseNot applicable
Trial typeInterventional
Biological sexAll
Age55-80
SponsorUniversity of Southern Denmark
About this trial
High-risk drinking is very prevalent among Danes aged 55+. It poses a serious risk to health and independent living, burdening health care systems and family members. Measures to reduce high-risk alcohol use in this growing group at need are urgently needed. A recent small study from the US shows that text messaging reduces high-risk alcohol intake in older adults. The investigators will conduct a pilot study with the same intervention in Denmark, with adaptations to language and culture. The pilot study will investigate among Danish older adults whether text messaging is well-accepted by participants and feasible in terms of reducing 1) high-risk drinking and 2) commonly accompanying problems with daily functioning, social relationships, and mental and physical health. The pilot-trial will include n=60 adults aged 55-80 years who will receive alcohol-related text messages (within a secure app for data protection purposes) over 12 weeks. Assessments will include a baseline assessment and a post-assessment.
Eligibility criteria
This trial does not accept healthy volunteersQualifiers
consumption of > 10 standard drinks á 12 gram ethanol per week (i.e., high-risk alcohol use defined by the Danish Health Authority) in the past four weeks
desire to reduce drinking
age 55 to 80 years
mobile phone ownership and willingness to receive and respond to text messages
Disqualifiers
drinking more than 53 standard drinks per week in the last four weeks
past 12 month alcohol withdrawal symptoms or lifetime history of serious withdrawal symptoms (e.g., seizures)
score above 12 on the Short alcohol withdrawal scale; SAWS
possible drug dependence (i.e., use of illegal drugs or psychotropic medication taken without prescription more than once a month)
Trial design
Design model
Parallel
Treatments tested in this trial
Text messaging
BehavioralParticipants receive text messages related to their alcohol consumption.
Treatment groups
60 Participants
are divided into 6 treatment groups6
Treatment groupsSee each treatment group below.
Group A: Gain-framedExperimental treatment 1 intervention
Group B: Loss-framedExperimental treatment 1 intervention
Group C: Static-tailoredExperimental treatment 1 intervention
Group D: Adaptive-tailoredExperimental treatment 1 intervention
Group E: CombinedExperimental treatment 1 intervention
Group F: Assessment-onlyNo intervention 0 interventions
Trial outcomes
Primary outcomes
1
High-risk alcohol use (yes/no)
Drinking over 120 gram ethanol in seven days (determined by outcomes 4 \& 5 )
Time frame
Assessed at 12 weeks after baseline, alcohol use through the past seven daysSecondary outcomes
1
WHOQOL-Bref (The World Health Organization Quality of Life Brief Version )
Quality of life, functioning. Higher scores represent higher quality of life.
Time frame
Assessed at 12 weeks after baseline2
OBSESSIVE-COMPULSIVE DRINKING SCALE (OCDS)
Degree of compulsive alcohol use, with higher scores representing a higher degree
Time frame
Through the past seven days, assessed at 12 weeks after baseline3
Drinker Inventory of Consequences (DrInC-2R)
Consequences of drinking, a higher score represents greater consequences
Time frame
Through the past 14 days, assessed at 12 weeks after baseline4
Frequency of alcohol use
Measured in number of days
Time frame
Assessed at 12 weeks after baseline, alcohol use through the past seven daysSponsors and contacts
Click on the lead sponsor to view all of their trials.
University of Southern Denmark
Lead sponsor
Anette Søgaard Nielsen, PhD
Collaborator
Kjeld Andersen, PhD
Collaborator
Angelina Mellentin, PhD
Collaborator
Alexis Kuerbis
Collaborator
Source ClinicalTrials.gov