| Accession Number | <strong>00001504-200405000-00005</strong>. |
|---|---|
| Author | Saladin, Michael E; Santa Ana, Elizabeth J |
| Institution | Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, South Carolina, USA |
| Title | |
| Source | Current Opinion in Psychiatry. 17(3):175-187, May 2004. |
| Abstract | Purpose of review: We intend to provide clinicians and clinical scientists with an overview of developments in the controlled-drinking literature, primarily since 2000. A brief description of the controversy surrounding controlled drinking provides a context for a discussion of various approaches to controlled drinking intervention as well as relevant clinical research. Recent findings: Consistent with previous research, behavioral self-control training continues to be the most empirically validated controlled-drinking intervention. Recent research has focused on increasing both the accessibility/availability and efficacy of behavioral self-control training. Moderation-oriented cue exposure is a recent development in behaviorally oriented controlled drinking that yields treatment outcomes comparable to behavioral self-control training. The relative efficacy of moderation-oriented cue exposure versus behavioral self-control training may vary depending on the format of treatment delivery (group versus individual) and level of drinking severity. In general, the efficacy of both techniques does not appear to vary as a function of drinking severity but may vary as a function of drinking-related self-efficacy. Guided-self change is a relatively new and brief cognitive-behavioral intervention that has demonstrated efficacy with problem drinkers. Interventions based on harm reduction principles have decreased alcohol use in various student populations. Finally, Moderation Management is the only self-help program that supports non-abstinence goals, a feature that makes it popular with problem drinkers who are avoidant of traditional treatment services. Summary: The controversial past of controlled drinking is slowly giving way to a hopeful future in which individuals are less likely to be forced into an abstinence-only treatment scenario. The enhanced accessibility of effective controlled-drinking interventions should significantly expand the treatment options of individuals within the full spectrum of alcohol-related problems. (C) 2004 Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, Inc. |