Environment and Alcohol: A Pilot Study
Recruiting now · Phase 1
Conditions studied: Alcohol Use Disorder
In brief
Background: Alcohol use disorder (AUD) is a chronic disease that causes more than 140,000 US deaths each year. AUD treatment often includes therapy and medication. Some people with AUD may also benefit from behavioral and lifestyle changes. Objective: To evaluate the effects of different activities and environments on drinking behaviors and mental health in people with AUD. Eligibility: People aged 21 years and older with AUD. Design: Participants will have up to 10 study visits in Baltimore. Participants will have a baseline visit. They will have a physical exam with blood and urine tests. They will have a breath test for alcohol and a test that measures body composition. They will answer questions about their alcohol and substance use; mental and physical health; mood and anxiety; and sleep quality. Participants will download an app called MetricWire. The app will send 3 sets of questions to be answered at different times throughout the day. The study visits will include 2 stages: 1. Active stage. On these visits, participants will use a virtual reality system called the Meta Quest Pro (MQP) as they choose. Then they may choose among video games, puzzles, books, crafts, and other activities.. These sessions will last for 3 hours. 2. Passive stage. On these visits, participants will watch videos selected by the research team. These sessions will last for 3 hours. On the last visit of each stage, participants will sit in a room that looks like a bar. They will answer questions about their cravings, their urge to drink, and how many drinks they would buy. Participants will be served 1 drink containing alcohol. They will be asked about their cravings and subjective effects of alcohol after drinking it.
Key facts
- Study ID
- NCT06860607
- Run by
- National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA)
- People needed
- 44
- Starts
- 2026-08-13
- Expected to finish
- 2028-03-01
- Last updated by the study team
- 2026-08-10
Who can join
Age: 21 and older, up to 100. Sex: any. Healthy volunteers: accepted.
You may not qualify if…
- Any individual who meets any of the following criteria will be excluded from this study:
- Current use of FDA-approved pharmacotherapy for AUD (or of a medication intended as an off-label use to treat AUD as determined by the MAI), or currently seeking treatment for AUD
- Medical and/or mental health conditions that are clinically unstable and would therefore compromise the safety and/or scientific integrity of the study, as determined by the MAI or study team respectively.
- Known history of clinically significant cybersickness.
- Any other reason or clinical condition that the Investigators judge would interfere with study participation and/or be unsafe for a participant
- Unable to speak, read, write, and understand English
- Justification: Many of the assessments have only been validated in English, and therefore, a non-English translation would jeopardize the scientific integrity of the study.
Where it is running
- National Institute on Drug Abuse — Baltimore, Maryland, United States (enrolling)
Full record on ClinicalTrials.gov
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