Effectiveness of ‘Relapse Prevention Therapy’ on High-Risk Situations for Alcohol Use Among Alcohol Dependents

Abstract

Introduction:

Alcohol dependence is a major health concern. It is a progressive and fatal condition influenced by various factors such as heredity, psychology, and environment. There are intrapersonal, interpersonal, and social high-risk situations associated with relapse.

Aim:

To assess the effectiveness of “relapse prevention therapy” on high-risk situations for alcohol use among alcohol dependents.

Methods:

A preexperimental design was used. The study was registered with Central Trial Registry of India (CTRI). Total 32 patients from Drug De-addiction and Treatment Centre Out Patient Department (OPD), Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER), Chandigarh, were selected by using the purposive sampling technique. The tools used for data collection were sociodemographic datasheet cum clinical datasheet of the patient and inventory of drug-taking situations (IDTS-8). Patients received three sessions of relapse prevention therapy. Follow-up was done after eight weeks of relapse prevention therapy. Data was analyzed by both per-protocol analysis and worst-case analysis.

Results:

All three sessions were completed by 71.9% participants. Participants reported unpleasant emotions as the most frequent cause of their drinking. It was found that there was a significant reduction in alcohol consumption because of high-risk situations (P =< .05) in both the analysis.

Conclusion:

Relapse prevention therapy was effective in dealing with high-risk situations for alcohol use.