Evidence mapPaperPMID 40598563Full record

Trial reportBMC medicine2025

Effectiveness of the WeChat-based mini-program ("Sober Time ACT") on individuals with hazardous drinking in China: a randomized controlled trial.

Chengcong Wu, Peiqiong Yang, Yuzhen Tang, Tianzhen Chen, Shuo Li, Shucai Huang, Jiang Du

Registry-linked trialAbstract readRandomized Controlled Trial
In one paragraph

Trial report in BMC medicine, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to trial NCT05827822 (Effectiveness of a WeChat-based Alcohol Consumption Intervention Mini-program), which is not on this map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

NCT05827822 naunknown statusnot on this map

Effectiveness of a WeChat-based Alcohol Consumption Intervention Mini-program ("Sober Time ACT") Among Hazardous and Problematic Drinkers in China

TypeinterventionalSponsorShanghai Mental Health CenterRan2023 to 2023Enrolled198ConditionsAlcohol Use Disorder, Alcohol AbuseArmsSober Time ACT
3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

7 authors.

Chengcong Wu *Shanghai Mental Health Center, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, 200030, China.
Peiqiong Yang *Shanghai Mental Health Center, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, 200030, China.
Yuzhen TangShanghai Mental Health Center, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, 200030, China.
Tianzhen ChenShanghai Mental Health Center, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, 200030, China.
Shuo LiShanghai Mental Health Center, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, 200030, China. ls520522@sjtu.edu.cn.
Shucai HuangWuhu Hospital of Anding Hospital (Wuhu Fourth People's Hospital), Wuhu, 241000, China. schuang1986@126.com.
Jiang DuShanghai Mental Health Center, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, 200030, China. dujiangdou@163.com.

Funding

dujiang 21DZ2201000zhao min 2019HY320001zhao min 82130041
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundHazardous drinking is a big problem in China, but there are no effective intervention measures to solve this issue. This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of the WeChat-based mini-program "Sober Time ACT" in the hazardous drinking population.

methodsA prospective two-arm randomized controlled trial (RCT) was conducted via WeChat between March and November 2023. A total of 186 participants with hazardous drinking were included and randomized in a 1:1 ratio. The intervention group (n = 93) received the "Sober Time ACT" program, and the control group (n = 93) received alcohol abstinence brochures for 4 weeks. The primary outcome measure was the change in craving before and after the intervention. Secondary outcomes included changes in average weekly alcohol consumption and average number of risky drinking days per month, as well as psychological indicators (depression, anxiety, sleep status, and perceived stress). Intention-to-treat (ITT) analyses were applied. Sensitivity analysis was conducted using the expectation-maximization (EM) and the multiple imputation (MI) methods to handle missing data. Repeated measures ANOVA and linear regression models were used to evaluate all outcome indicators.

resultsThe analysis revealed statistically significant time-by-group interaction effects for alcohol craving (P = 0.01), average weekly alcohol consumption (P = 0.03), anxiety levels (P = 0.03) and perceived stress (P < 0.05). The intervention group showed a significantly greater reduction in cravings from baseline to the end of follow-up compared to the control group with a group difference (P = 0.02 for EM and P = 0.01 for MI).

conclusionsThese findings provide preliminary prospective evidence that, despite the limitation of high dropout rate, the "Sober Time ACT" mini-program not only effectively reduces alcohol craving and consumption but also improves related psychological indicators to a certain extent, providing an innovative and effective intervention tool for addressing hazardous drinking in China.

trial registrationThe study was registered on ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT05827822) in March 2023.

Indexed as

Alcohol AbstinenceAlcohol DrinkingAlcoholismAdultChinaCravingFemaleHumansMaleMiddle AgedProspective StudiesYoung AdultAbstinenceCravingDigital interventionHazardous drinkingRandomized controlled trial

Identifiers

PMID40598563
PMCPMC12217910

What Socratic holds

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Registered trials

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.