DAILY – A personalized circadian Zeitgeber therapy as an adjunctive treatment for alcohol use disorder patients: results of a pilot trial
BackgroundDisturbances of circadian rhythms and everyday structures are hallmarks of alcohol use disorder (AUD). Recurring activities such as sleep, activity, and meals represent time cues, so called Zeitgebers, that synchronize the circadian system. With our newly developed therapy approach for AUD...
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Frontiers Media S.A.
2025-02-01
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| Series: | Frontiers in Psychiatry |
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| Online Access: | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyt.2025.1477895/full |
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| author | Naomi Springer Naomi Springer Lisa Echtler Lisa Echtler Paul Volkmann Anisja Hühne-Landgraf Anisja Hühne-Landgraf Jasmin Hochenbleicher Eva Hoch Eva Hoch Gabi Koller Dominic Landgraf |
| author_facet | Naomi Springer Naomi Springer Lisa Echtler Lisa Echtler Paul Volkmann Anisja Hühne-Landgraf Anisja Hühne-Landgraf Jasmin Hochenbleicher Eva Hoch Eva Hoch Gabi Koller Dominic Landgraf |
| author_sort | Naomi Springer |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | BackgroundDisturbances of circadian rhythms and everyday structures are hallmarks of alcohol use disorder (AUD). Recurring activities such as sleep, activity, and meals represent time cues, so called Zeitgebers, that synchronize the circadian system. With our newly developed therapy approach for AUD patients, we aim to reduce relapses and alcohol consumption in AUD patients undergoing a withdrawal program by strengthening their circadian rhythms.Methods/DesignWe aim to achieve the improvement of circadian rhythms with personalized structure plans for daily Zeitgeber activities, which are used in parallel with the standard therapy at our clinic. The DAILY pilot study is a six-week monocentric trial with a controlled, randomized, single-blinded, parallel-group design. 41 AUD patients participated in the pilot study and were randomly assigned to an intervention group (IG) or a control group (CG).ResultsThe variability of daily activities was significantly lower in the IG group than in the CG group. Of the IG participants, two had relapsed during the study (<12%), whereas ten relapsed in the CG group (>60%). The relapsing IG participants recorded a total of three alcohol consumption days, while the CG participants recorded 52 consumption days. Abstinent participants showed significantly less variability in the times of their daily activities than relapsed participants. In addition, our analyses indicate that craving for alcohol is related to variability in the time of getting up and that craving and temporal variability increase before relapses. Moreover, the general well-being of the IG participants improved more than that of the CG participants.DiscussionThe data from this pilot study show that following a personalized daily structure plan helps AUD patients to remain abstinent during withdrawal therapy. The analyses indicate that temporal variability of daily activities and the risk of relapse are correlated. On the one hand, adherence to the daily structure may prevent relapse, on the other hand, an increase in variability may be a helpful predictor of approaching relapse. In our view, these data justify a continuation of the DAILY study with the addition of further measurements such as the determination of endogenous circadian rhythms.Clinical trial registrationhttps://drks.de, identifier DRKS00019093. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-32059b8fc1ec4499837067cda22dc82f |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 1664-0640 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-02-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
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| series | Frontiers in Psychiatry |
| spelling | doaj-art-32059b8fc1ec4499837067cda22dc82f2025-02-07T06:49:43ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Psychiatry1664-06402025-02-011610.3389/fpsyt.2025.14778951477895DAILY – A personalized circadian Zeitgeber therapy as an adjunctive treatment for alcohol use disorder patients: results of a pilot trialNaomi Springer0Naomi Springer1Lisa Echtler2Lisa Echtler3Paul Volkmann4Anisja Hühne-Landgraf5Anisja Hühne-Landgraf6Jasmin Hochenbleicher7Eva Hoch8Eva Hoch9Gabi Koller10Dominic Landgraf11Circadian Biology Group, Molecular Neurobiology, Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, LMU University Hospital, LMU Munich, Munich, GermanyMunich Medical Research School, LMU Munich, Munich, GermanyCircadian Biology Group, Molecular Neurobiology, Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, LMU University Hospital, LMU Munich, Munich, GermanyMunich Medical Research School, LMU Munich, Munich, GermanyCentre for Neural Circuits and Behaviour, University of Oxford, Oxford, United KingdomCircadian Biology Group, Molecular Neurobiology, Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, LMU University Hospital, LMU Munich, Munich, GermanyMunich Medical Research School, LMU Munich, Munich, GermanyCircadian Biology Group, Molecular Neurobiology, Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, LMU University Hospital, LMU Munich, Munich, GermanyCannabinoid Research and Treatment Group, Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, LMU University Hospital, and Division of Clinical Psychology and Psychological Treatment, Department of Psychology, LMU Munich., Munich, GermanyIFT Center for Mental Health & Addiction Research, Munich, GermanyDepartment of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, LMU University Hospital, LMU Munich, Munich, GermanyCircadian Biology Group, Molecular Neurobiology, Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, LMU University Hospital, LMU Munich, Munich, GermanyBackgroundDisturbances of circadian rhythms and everyday structures are hallmarks of alcohol use disorder (AUD). Recurring activities such as sleep, activity, and meals represent time cues, so called Zeitgebers, that synchronize the circadian system. With our newly developed therapy approach for AUD patients, we aim to reduce relapses and alcohol consumption in AUD patients undergoing a withdrawal program by strengthening their circadian rhythms.Methods/DesignWe aim to achieve the improvement of circadian rhythms with personalized structure plans for daily Zeitgeber activities, which are used in parallel with the standard therapy at our clinic. The DAILY pilot study is a six-week monocentric trial with a controlled, randomized, single-blinded, parallel-group design. 41 AUD patients participated in the pilot study and were randomly assigned to an intervention group (IG) or a control group (CG).ResultsThe variability of daily activities was significantly lower in the IG group than in the CG group. Of the IG participants, two had relapsed during the study (<12%), whereas ten relapsed in the CG group (>60%). The relapsing IG participants recorded a total of three alcohol consumption days, while the CG participants recorded 52 consumption days. Abstinent participants showed significantly less variability in the times of their daily activities than relapsed participants. In addition, our analyses indicate that craving for alcohol is related to variability in the time of getting up and that craving and temporal variability increase before relapses. Moreover, the general well-being of the IG participants improved more than that of the CG participants.DiscussionThe data from this pilot study show that following a personalized daily structure plan helps AUD patients to remain abstinent during withdrawal therapy. The analyses indicate that temporal variability of daily activities and the risk of relapse are correlated. On the one hand, adherence to the daily structure may prevent relapse, on the other hand, an increase in variability may be a helpful predictor of approaching relapse. In our view, these data justify a continuation of the DAILY study with the addition of further measurements such as the determination of endogenous circadian rhythms.Clinical trial registrationhttps://drks.de, identifier DRKS00019093.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyt.2025.1477895/fullcircadianchronotherapyalcohol use disorder (AUD)addictionrelapsedepression |
| spellingShingle | Naomi Springer Naomi Springer Lisa Echtler Lisa Echtler Paul Volkmann Anisja Hühne-Landgraf Anisja Hühne-Landgraf Jasmin Hochenbleicher Eva Hoch Eva Hoch Gabi Koller Dominic Landgraf DAILY – A personalized circadian Zeitgeber therapy as an adjunctive treatment for alcohol use disorder patients: results of a pilot trial Frontiers in Psychiatry circadian chronotherapy alcohol use disorder (AUD) addiction relapse depression |
| title | DAILY – A personalized circadian Zeitgeber therapy as an adjunctive treatment for alcohol use disorder patients: results of a pilot trial |
| title_full | DAILY – A personalized circadian Zeitgeber therapy as an adjunctive treatment for alcohol use disorder patients: results of a pilot trial |
| title_fullStr | DAILY – A personalized circadian Zeitgeber therapy as an adjunctive treatment for alcohol use disorder patients: results of a pilot trial |
| title_full_unstemmed | DAILY – A personalized circadian Zeitgeber therapy as an adjunctive treatment for alcohol use disorder patients: results of a pilot trial |
| title_short | DAILY – A personalized circadian Zeitgeber therapy as an adjunctive treatment for alcohol use disorder patients: results of a pilot trial |
| title_sort | daily a personalized circadian zeitgeber therapy as an adjunctive treatment for alcohol use disorder patients results of a pilot trial |
| topic | circadian chronotherapy alcohol use disorder (AUD) addiction relapse depression |
| url | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyt.2025.1477895/full |
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