Mobile phone-based text messages have been used to address alcohol use disorder in younger populations by promoting abstinence, decreased alcohol intake, and moderation.
Methods:
A meta-analysis was conducted to summarize the effectiveness of mobile phone text messaging to address problem drinking by youth and younger adults.
Results:
Authors systematically searched PubMed, Embase, CINAHL, Web of Science, APA PsycNET, and the Cochrane Central Registry of Controlled Trials for literature published in the past 8 years (2010–2018). Randomized control trials and pre–post studies of younger people that used the problem drinking criteria of the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) were included in the meta-analysis.
Conclusions:
The meta-analysis suggests that text message-based interventions might not be effective in decreasing alcohol intake in the younger populations.
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