Evidence-Based Treatments for Alcohol Use Disorders in Adolescents

Abstract

The author has indicated she has no financial relationships relevant to this article to disclose. ABSTRACTThe prevalence of adolescent alcohol use and its related consequences underscore the need for evidenced-based treatments in this population. During the past decade, much progress has been made in treating adolescent alcohol use disorders with evidenced-based modalities developed specifically for adolescents. Controlled treatment outcome studies that compared Ն1 modality, used random assignment to treatment conditions, and were published between 1990 and 2004 are discussed in this review. Psychosocial treatments such as family-based interventions, motivational enhancement therapy (motivational interviewing), behavioral therapy, and cognitive-behavioral therapy, as well as the limited pharmacotherapy studies, are discussed. All of the studies used assessment tools validated for use in adolescent populations. Overall, great strides have been made in the area of adolescent alcohol treatment, and the treatment modalities presented have more than adequate potential for replication. O VER THE PAST decade, great strides have been made in the treatment of alcohol and other drug (AOD) disorders in adolescents. Before that period, most of the treatments administered for AOD disorders were those used to treat adults, and little or no modifications were made on the basis of developmental considerations for adolescents. Treatment replication was almost nonexistent, because treatments lacked specific protocols or structured delivery. In an attempt to evaluate the effectiveness of adolescent drug treatment, Catalano et al 1 concluded that some treatment is better than no treatment. Recent advances in AOD disorder treatment include treatment modalities designed specifically to treat adolescents, some of which were modified from adult treatments. The awareness that "adolescents are not adults" and that there are developmental differences that may affect treatment, adherence, and outcomes has advanced the field of adolescent alcohol treatment. 2 Treatments have been developed specifically to target AOD disorders in adolescents. This article reviews treatment outcome studies for adolescents with AOD disorders. INCLUSION CRITERIAOverwhelmingly, treatments for AOD disorders in adolescents have involved psychosocial modalities, the bulk of which have not been tested in a controlled, comparative fashion. To identify treatment outcome studies that were conducted in a controlled fashion, comparing Ն1 modality, a computerized literature search was conducted through journal databases, including Medline, PsychInfo, and Current Contents. In addition, the reference lists of the published articles were reviewed. Studies included in this review were those that (1) focused on AOD use disorders in adolescents, (2) evaluated Ն1 treatment modality in a comparative manner, (3) were published between 1990 and 2005, and (4) used random assignment to treatment conditions. This approach was used to highlight evidence-based treatments, to promote the...

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