Evidence-based treatments for alcohol use disorders in adolescents

Abstract

The 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 > or = 1 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.