Modulation of Pharmacologically Induced Alcohol Craving in Recently Detoxified Alcoholics

Summary

This study will determine if acamprosate, a drug approved to treat alcoholism, decreases alcohol cravings in alcohol-dependent subjects following infusions of yohimbine and mCPP. Yohimbine causes anxiety and may provoke a desire for alcohol; mCPP induces a feeling of having had a few drinks, which often creates a desire for more drinks. If acamprosate can prevent a craving following these stimuli, then the effectiveness of new experimental drugs for treating alcoholism can be tested for their ability to block yohimbine or mCPP-induced cravings. This type of investigation would be less expensive and less time-consuming than conducting clinical trials with alcohol-dependent people. People between 21 and 65 years of age who are alcohol-dependent and have been drinking regularly for at least 1 month before entering the study may be eligible to participate. Participants are admitted to the NIH Clinical Center for about 35 days, during which time they are asked to participate in an alcohol treatment program. They may request passes to leave the hospital during the day but must return overnight. Upon return to the hospital, subjects are required to take a breathalyzer test for alcohol and urine screen for drug use. Participants found to have used drugs or consumed alcohol while away from the hospital are terminated from the study. Participants are randomly assigned to take acamprosate or placebo pills three times a day for about 2 weeks. They are then given three intravenous (through a vein) infusions, 5 to 7 days apart, each containing either yohimbine, mCPP or placebo. The drugs are infused for 20 minutes following a 1-hour infusion of saline (salt water). Subjects complete two questionnaires - an alcohol urge questionnaire to assess the desire for alcohol and a PASS rating scale to assess anxiety - several times during the study and during the infusions....

Timeline

Start

2008-01

Primary completion

2010-09

Completion

2011-03

Publications

• Background Heilig M, Egli M. Pharmacological treatment of alcohol dependence: target symptoms and target mechanisms. Pharmacol Ther. 2006 Sep;111(3):855-76. doi: 10.1016/j.pharmthera.2006.02.001. Epub 2006 Mar 20.
• Background Heilig M, Koob GF. A key role for corticotropin-releasing factor in alcohol dependence. Trends Neurosci. 2007 Aug;30(8):399-406. doi: 10.1016/j.tins.2007.06.006. Epub 2007 Jul 16.
• Background Bohn MJ, Krahn DD, Staehler BA. Development and initial validation of a measure of drinking urges in abstinent alcoholics. Alcohol Clin Exp Res. 1995 Jun;19(3):600-6. doi: 10.1111/j.1530-0277.1995.tb01554.x.

Drugs

Indications