A Study on the Biobehavioral Mechanisms of Baclofen and Alcohol Drinking
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The safety and scientific validity of this study is the responsibility of the study sponsor and investigators. Listing a study does not mean it has been evaluated by the U.S. Federal Government. Read our disclaimer for details. |
ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT01076283 |
Recruitment Status :
Completed
First Posted : February 26, 2010
Results First Posted : October 17, 2013
Last Update Posted : October 17, 2013
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Condition or disease | Intervention/treatment | Phase |
---|---|---|
Alcoholism | Drug: Baclofen Drug: Cyproheptadine | Phase 2 |
Study Type : | Interventional (Clinical Trial) |
Actual Enrollment : | 14 participants |
Allocation: | Randomized |
Intervention Model: | Parallel Assignment |
Masking: | Triple (Participant, Care Provider, Investigator) |
Primary Purpose: | Treatment |
Official Title: | A Pilot Study on the Biobehavioral Mechanisms of Baclofen and Alcohol Drinking |
Study Start Date : | December 2009 |
Actual Primary Completion Date : | April 2010 |
Actual Study Completion Date : | May 2010 |

Arm | Intervention/treatment |
---|---|
Active Comparator: Baclofen
Baclofen 10 mg three times a day (t.i.d.) for 8-10 days
|
Drug: Baclofen
Baclofen 10mg t.i.d. |
Placebo Comparator: Cyproheptadine
Cyproheptadine 2 mg t.i.d. for 8-10 days
|
Drug: Cyproheptadine
'active' placebo |
- Alcohol Urge [ Time Frame: approximately 8 days after drug administration ]
Whether baclofen, as compared to active placebo, results in diminished cue-reactivity responses to alcohol cues in terms of urge to drink [as measured by the Alcohol Urge Questionnaire (AUQ)] during the Cue Reactivity.
The Alcohol Urge Questionnaire (AUQ) consists of eight statements about the respondent's feelings and thoughts about drinking as they are completing the questionnaire (i.e., right now). The respondent is asked to respond to each statement about alcohol craving via a 7-item Likert scale ranging from "strongly disagree" to "strongly agree." Each item is scored on a 1 to 7 scale (Strongly Disagree = 1 and Strongly Agree = 7). Items 2 and 7 are reverse scored. A total score is computed by summing the item scores and ranges from 8 (lowest craving value) to 56 (highest craving value). Higher scores reflect greater craving (i.e. worse outcome).
- Alcohol Drinking [ Time Frame: approximately 8 days after drug administration ]
Whether baclofen, as compared to active placebo, results in lower quantity of alcohol consumed during the Alcohol Self-Administration (ASA).
Consistent with O'Malley et al. 2002, the ASA paradigm allows to use a fixed-dose (the priming drink), followed by a 2-hour "free-choice" phase when subjects may choose to drink or not up to 8 mini-drinks. Participants receive a monetary compensation of $3 dollars per each mini-drink not consumed; therefore the amount of minidrinks consumed during the 2-hour sessions ranges 0-8, and the monetary compensation ranges $0-24. The quantity of alcohol consumed during the free-choice session is expressed as "standard drinking unit", where a standard drink unit contains about 14 grams of pure alcohol (about 0.6 fluid ounces or 1.2 tablespoons).

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Ages Eligible for Study: | 21 Years to 65 Years (Adult, Older Adult) |
Sexes Eligible for Study: | All |
Accepts Healthy Volunteers: | No |
Inclusion Criteria:
- must be male or female between 21 and 65 years old (inclusive).
- participants must meet criteria for current Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, fourth edition, text revision (DSM-IV-TR) diagnosis of alcohol dependence, supported by the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV-TR Axis I Disorders Patient Edition (SCID-I/P).
- participants must meet criteria for heavy drinking, defined as averaging ≥4 drinks/day for women and ≥5 drinks/day for men during a consecutive 30-day period within the 90 days prior to baseline evaluation (see: Anton et al, 2006). The gender-specific baseline was chosen as it represents heavy drinking that exceeds empirically based levels of moderate alcohol use that result in alcohol-related problems for women who consume ≥4 drinks/day, and men who consume ≥5 drinks/day (Sanchez-Craig et al, 1995).
- participants must be in good health as confirmed by medical history, physical examination, ECG, lab tests.
- females must be postmenopausal for at least one year, surgically sterile, or practicing an effective method of birth control before entry and throughout the study; have a negative urine pregnancy test at each visit.
- participants must be willing to take oral medication and adhere to the study procedures.
Exclusion criteria:
- individuals expressing interest in treatment for alcoholism.
- pregnancy or breast feeding women or not using an adequate form of birth control
- positive urine drug screen at baseline for any illegal substance (a urine drug screen may be repeated once during the screening period).
- individuals diagnosed with a current substance dependence diagnosis, other than alcohol or nicotine.
- meet DSM-IV Axis I criteria for a lifetime diagnosis of schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, or other psychoses.
- an active illness within the past 6 months of Visit 1 that meet the DSM-IV criteria for a diagnosis of Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) or Anxiety Disorder. Subjects with a history of suicide will be excluded.
- clinically significant medical abnormalities (i.e., unstable hypertension, ECG, bilirubin > 150% of the upper normal limit, ALT or AST elevations >300% the upper normal limit, creatinine clearance ≤ 60 dl/min).
- current use of psychotropic medications that cannot be discontinued that may have an effect on alcohol consumption or that may interact with baclofen or cyproheptadine.
- medical contraindications for use of baclofen or cyproheptadine.
- a history of adverse reaction or hypersensitivity to baclofen or cyproheptadine.
- individuals with a reasonable expectation of being institutionalized during the course of the trial.
- participants who have significant alcohol withdrawal symptoms, defined as a Clinical Institute Withdrawal Assessment for Alcohol (CIWA-Ar) >10.
- history of seizures (e.g. epilepsy).
- subjects who have participated in any behavioral and/or pharmacological study within the past 90 days.

To learn more about this study, you or your doctor may contact the study research staff using the contact information provided by the sponsor.
Please refer to this study by its ClinicalTrials.gov identifier (NCT number): NCT01076283
United States, Rhode Island | |
Brown University Center for Alcohol and Addiction Studies | |
Providence, Rhode Island, United States, 02903 |
Principal Investigator: | Lorenzo Leggio, M.D., M.Sc. | Brown University Center for Alcohol and Addiction Studies |
Other Publications:
Responsible Party: | Lorenzo Leggio, Assistant Professor (Research), Brown University |
ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: | NCT01076283 |
Other Study ID Numbers: |
0906000002 |
First Posted: | February 26, 2010 Key Record Dates |
Results First Posted: | October 17, 2013 |
Last Update Posted: | October 17, 2013 |
Last Verified: | October 2013 |
baclofen alcoholism urge |
craving alcohol drinking biobehavioral mechanisms of baclofen in alcoholism |
Alcoholism Alcohol Drinking Alcohol-Related Disorders Substance-Related Disorders Chemically-Induced Disorders Mental Disorders Drinking Behavior Cyproheptadine Baclofen Muscle Relaxants, Central Physiological Effects of Drugs Neuromuscular Agents Peripheral Nervous System Agents GABA-B Receptor Agonists |
GABA Agonists GABA Agents Neurotransmitter Agents Molecular Mechanisms of Pharmacological Action Antipruritics Dermatologic Agents Gastrointestinal Agents Histamine H1 Antagonists Histamine Antagonists Histamine Agents Serotonin Antagonists Serotonin Agents Anti-Allergic Agents |