Call For Participants In Alcohol Study

Monday 17 September 2007

Call For Participants In Alcohol And Depression Study

A world-first study into the best treatment for people with both alcohol dependence and depression is being launched this month in Whangarei, Auckland, Hamilton, Christchurch and Dunedin. This ground-breaking research is being led by the National Addiction Centre at the University of Otago, Christchurch and has major funding from the Health Council of New Zealand over three and half years.

Alcohol is our favourite drug and depression is the common cold of mental conditions. Further, a sting in the tail of alcohol use is that it can directly cause depression. The combination of alcohol dependence and depression is one of the most common co-morbid conditions in people presenting for help at addiction treatment services, and affects thousands of New Zealanders.

The Treatment Evaluation of Alcohol and Mood (TEAM) study is now looking for 220 participants, in six key nationwide sites; 25 investigators are involved in this major study.

“This is a great opportunity for people who have alcohol dependence and depression, (alcoholic depression) to get free treatment over an extended period,” says study leader Professor Doug Sellman from the University of Otago, Christchurch. “It’s also a chance to help improve the treatment of both these conditions throughout the country.”

The TEAM study is investigating for the first time whether or not health results are better for people who suffer from both alcohol and depression, if they are given medication for both conditions at the same time.

“The conventional approach to treatment of people with alcohol and depression problems has been to deal with alcohol dependence first, and then address the depression. This is a fantastic opportunity to test out whether antidepressants given at the same time as addressing the alcohol problem is effective” says Professor Sellman.

The study will provide all participants with the anti-craving drug Naltrexone for three months, which has been used in New Zealand for the past three years. Half the participants will also be given an anti-depressant Citalopram, and half a placebo. Participants will also receive expert clinical case management during and after the trial.

“The key question is does the use of an antidepressant at the same time as the anti-craving drug improve the outcome for both depression and drinking?” he says.

“This is not a trial of new drugs. The two medications we’re using are both approved and funded by Pharmac and are widely used in this country to treat either alcohol dependence or depression. What we’re looking at is to see if there are real health benefits by using both drugs together.”

The health researchers will also examine how genetic differences between individuals affect their response to the different treatments.

Professor Sellman says that another benefit from taking part in this study is that participants will learn a lot more about their health problem, which will help them manage it better in the future.

If you are interested in taking part in the TEAM study please ring 0800-TEAMRESEARCH (0800-832 673)

For further regional comment contact the researchers below. Please do not broadcast or publicise the mobile numbers below for participant recruitment. Use the 0800 number above.

ENDS

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