None listed
Conditions
Brief summary
Alcohol use and related harms are increasing among older adults, indicating a critical need for alcohol prevention and brief intervention programs that are both scalable and effective when targeting this population. It is also important that these interventions include measurement of cognitive outcomes, given the established relationship between alcohol use and cognitive decline in older adults, as well as the potential for these treatments to reverse alcohol-related cognitive deficits in ageing populations. This study will investigate whether a new Internet-delivered intervention is effective in reducing alcohol consumption, cognitive decline and alcohol-related harms, as well as in improving quality of life, among a sample of older risky drinkers (n=842). Older adults aged 60-75 years who meet criteria for risking drinking based on scores from the Alcohol Use Disorder Identification Test will be included in the study. Participants must have access to a home computer and Internet and be based in Australia. The study will be a randomised controlled trial with a 12-month follow-up period. Participants will be randomly allocated to one of two groups: (1) a new internet-delivered intervention, or (2) active control condition. In both conditions, participants will be free to work through the online materials at their own pace at home on a personal computer. The period of active enrolment will be four weeks for both conditions. Outcome assessments will be conducted at baseline, 4-week follow-up and 12-month follow-up on the participant's personal computer at home. Outcomes include: (1) assessment of alcohol consumption using an online calendar-based tool, (2) assessment of cognitive functioning using a battery of computerised tests, and (3) subjective cognitive complaints using an online questionnaire. In addition, the study will assess whether a range of secondary outcomes, including alcohol-related harms and quality of life are affected by the intervention.
Interventions
The intervention program is based upon an internet-delivered alcohol treatment program developed in the UK (Down Your Drink; www.downyourdrink.org.uk). The intervention is currently being adapted for an older Australian audience and includes educational content and personalised feedback regarding alcohol consumption and related harms, as well as several online tools and exercises designed to facilitate behaviour change. Online tools include a ‘thinking drinking diary’, allowing users to record t
The intervention program is based upon an internet-delivered alcohol treatment program developed in the UK (Down Your Drink; www.downyourdrink.org.uk). The intervention is currently being adapted for an older Australian audience and includes educational content and personalised feedback regarding alcohol consumption and related harms, as well as several online tools and exercises designed to facilitate behaviour change. Online tools include a ‘thinking drinking diary’, allowing users to record their alcohol consumption and associated emotional and behavioural triggers; a standard drinks calculator; and a tool for recording episodes of heavy episodic drinking. The intervention includes four treatment modules in total and progresses through three distinct phases: 1) decision making (Module 1, ‘Should I cut down?’ and Module 2, ‘Planning to cut down’); 2) implementing change (Module 3, ‘Cutting down’); and 3) relapse prevention (Module 4, ‘Staying on track’). Phase 1 (Modules 1-2) is based on the principles of motivational enhancement therapy, Phase 2 (Module 3) on the principles of cognitive behavioural therapy and behavioural self-control and Phase 3 (Module 4) on best practice principles of relapse prevention. Participants enrolled in the intervention program will be provided with individual log-ons for the website. They will access the program on their own home computer and will be free to progress through the program at their own pace. The time taken to read through and complete all tasks once is anticipated to be approximately 45 minutes for each module. However, participants can complete as few or as many components and modules as they wish and will be able to review previous modules and repeat previous tasks at any time within the 4 week active enrolment period. While participants are free to engage with the program at their own pace, email reminders will be sent to participants who do not complete at least one module per week. After the period of active enrolment, participants in the intervention condition will be allowed to engage with the online program without restriction. User engagement data, including number of logins, time spent on the website, number of pages viewed, and number of modules completed, will be automatically collected and taken into account at the analysis stage.
Sponsors
UNSW Sydney
Study design
Allocation
Randomised controlled trial
Intervention model
Parallel
Primary purpose
Treatment
Masking
Blinded (masking used) (Subject, Investigator, Outcomes Assessor)
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
All
Age
60 Years to 75 Years
Healthy volunteers
No
Inclusion criteria
Participants will be eligible for inclusion in the study if they are 60 to 75 years old; meet the criteria for hazardous or harmful drinking (Alcohol Use Disorder Identification Test [AUDIT] score greater than or equal to 8); have access to a home computer, email account and the Internet; and are based in Australia.
Exclusion criteria
Exclusion criteria include: diagnosis of a neurological disorder (e.g. dementia, Parkinson’s disease, multiple sclerosis); having ever been prescribed medication for the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease; uncorrected visual impairment; inability to use a mouse/keyboard without assistance; the presence of a severe physical illness or life-threatening condition; having been held in hospital overnight (at least 24h) 6 or more times in the last 12-months; having had surgery requiring general anaesthesia in the last 3-months; having suffered a heart attack or stroke in the last 3-months; having ever been diagnosed with brain cancer; an active psychological condition requiring inpatient treatment or antipsychotic medication; involvement in another treatment program for alcohol use; having ever experienced a seizure as a consequence of alcohol withdrawal; having ever experienced delirium tremens as a consequence of alcohol withdrawal; and inability to read and write in English.
Outcome results
None listed