Project details

Summary

What is the study about?

Over half a million adults in the UK have alcohol problems that require treatment. Just 1 in 4 people with an alcohol problem get treatment, and current treatment methods often are not very good at stopping people returning to heavy drinking in the long term.

Ketamine is an anaesthetic drug that is widely used in general hospitals for carrying out brief surgical procedures. In lower doses ketamine has anti-depressant properties.

What are you trying to find out?

A growing body of research suggests that ketamine has promising applications in the treatment of alcohol problems. This trial aims to find out if ketamine combined with psychological therapy can help increase alcohol abstinence.

What does taking part involve?

We will need to ask you some questions and carry out some tests to make sure you are suitable. To do this we will ask you to: 

1. Fill in an online self-assessment on the trial website.
2. Have a telephone call with a member of the trial team
3. Attend a screening visit at one of the participating trial sites.

More detail can be found in the detailed Participant Information Sheet.

If you are eligible to take part you will: 

• Complete the 3 above screening steps.
• Reduce your alcohol intake safely to the point where you have been abstinent for ideally 2 weeks before your first treatment visit.
• Attend all treatment visits, please see overleaf for the visit schedule and timings. Full details of these visits can be found in the detailed participant information sheet.
• Be willing to wear an alcohol monitoring device around your wrist for the trial duration.
• Self-breathalyse every day during the trial.
• Keep an alcohol diary during the follow-up period of the trial.
• Attend all follow-up visits.

Over the course of a one-month period, you will receive three treatments with one of two doses of ketamine; either 0.8mg/kg or 0.05mg/kg over 40 minutes given through a drip. Alongside this you will receive seven sessions of one-to-one psychological support from a therapist, in the form of either therapy or alcohol education. The ketamine dose and type of psychological support you receive will be randomly assigned by a computer. Neither you nor the site research team will know which dose/support you are given. 

Who is it for?

You have been invited to take part because you have stopped, or have expressed a desire to reduce or stop, drinking alcohol. This trial aims to recruit 280 participants from approximately 10 research centres across the UK.

Why is it important? 

We hope that your participation in the trial helps you with your own aims to reduce or quit drinking alcohol. In addition to the medication, you will be asked to consider wearing an alcohol monitoring device, which has been shown to help people stay abstinent from alcohol. You will also be offered psychological support which can help some people reduce their drinking or remain sober. 

Whilst participation may or may not have direct benefits for you, taking part in this research could lead to improvements in future understanding and treatment of alcohol use disorders, and help people to remain abstinent for longer.

How can I find out more?

You can find out more information about taking part in this study by downloading the key documents at the top of this page. You can also visit the University of Exeter's project website here. 

If you are interested in taking part in this study, or have questions for the research team, click the button below to email us:

Email the research team