Effectiveness of Attentional Bias Modification Combined With Cognitive Behavioral Therapy in Reducing Relapse Risk and Cravings in Male Patients With Alcohol Use Disorder: A Quasi-Randomized Controlled Trial.

Abstract

Background: Alcohol use disorder (AUD) is characterized by severe dependence on alcohol, poor impulse control, and heightened attention to alcohol-related cues. Attention bias modification (ABM) retrains individuals to distract attention from alcohol-related cues. This study investigates the effect of combining ABM with cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) to reduce relapse risk and cravings in male patients with AUD.

Methods: A quasi-randomized controlled trial was conducted among male inpatients diagnosed with AUD. Participants were divided into an intervention group receiving ABM in addition to CBT and a control group receiving CBT with a placebo intervention. The primary outcomes-risk of relapse and craving levels-were measured using the Alcohol Relapse Risk Scale (ARRS) and a visual analog scale (VAS), respectively. Participants underwent weekly sessions over 6 weeks, and outcomes were analyzed using generalized linear models (GLMs).

Results: The analysis did not reveal significant interactions between the intervention group and time for ARRS scores and craving levels. Both groups experienced a reduction in relapse risk and cravings. However, there was no significant difference between the ABM + CBT and CBT-only groups.

Conclusions: Although the combined ABM and CBT intervention did not result in statistically significant reductions in relapse risk and cravings compared to CBT alone, the overall reduction in these outcomes in both groups highlights the effectiveness of CBT in treating AUD. Future studies should use naturalistic settings and tailor the intervention to individual cognitive profiles.