Trial reportBMC psychiatry2023
Effects of virtual reality-based cue exposure therapy on craving and physiological responses in alcohol-dependent patients-a randomised controlled trial.
Trial report in BMC psychiatry, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 12 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled 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.
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.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
12 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 13 citations in OpenAlex.
- The efficacy of conventional and technology assisted cue exposure therapy for treating substance use disorders: a qualitative systematic review.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2025Pooled it
- Virtual Reality in Prevention and Treatment of Substance-Related Disorders: A Systematic Review of Randomized Controlled Trials.Clinical psychology & psychotherapyPooled it
- Virtual Reality-Based Cue Exposure and Aversion Therapy for Alcohol Dependence: A Randomized Controlled Trial.Addiction biology · 2026Trial
- Efficacy and mechanisms of repeated closed-loop auditory exposure during slow-wave sleep for internet gaming disorder.Molecular psychiatry · 2025Trial
- Expert panel to identify applications of virtual reality (VR) in cognitive behavioral therapy for alcohol use disorder: A Delphi study.Research square · 2026Article
- Are virtual reality (VR) interventions for substance use disorders designed for implementation? A rapid review of platform characteristics and clinical fit.Research square · 2026Article
- Assessing usability and acceptability of a VR digital therapeutic for treatment of substance use disorders.Journal of social work practice in the addictions · 2026Article
- Multimodal Psychophysiological Assessment of Craving in Patients With Alcohol Dependence During Virtual Reality Cue Exposure: Exploratory Single-Arm Clinical Study.JMIR serious games · 2026Article
- Virtualizing Alcohol Use Disorder Therapy: A Systematic Scoping Review.Advances in therapy · 2026Article
- Virtual reality in treatment of psychological disorders: a systematic review.Frontiers in digital health · 2026Review
- Virtual reality interventions in the assessment and treatment of alcohol use disorder - a systematic scoping review on methodology.Addiction science & clinical practice · 2025Article
- Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
10 authors at 3 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundCue exposure therapy is used to treat alcohol dependence. However, its effectiveness is controversial due to the limitations of the clinical treatment setting. Virtual reality technology may improve the therapeutic effect. The aim of this study is to explore whether virtual reality-based cue exposure therapy can reduce the psychological craving and physiological responses of patients with alcohol dependence.
methodsForty-four male alcohol-dependent patients were recruited and divided into the study group (n = 23) and the control group (n = 21) according to a random number table. The control group received only conventional clinical treatment for alcohol dependence. The study group received conventional clinical treatment with the addition of VR cue exposure (treatment). The primary outcome was to assess psychological craving and physiological responses to cues of patients before and after treatment.
resultsAfter virtual reality-based cue exposure therapy, the changes in VAS and heart rate before and after cue exposure in the study group were significantly lower than those in the control group (P < 0.05), while the changes in skin conductance and respiration between the study group and the control group were not significantly different (P > 0.05). The changes in VAS and heart rate before and after cue exposure in the study group were significantly lower than those before treatment (P < 0.05), while the changes in skin conductance and respiration were not significantly different from those before treatment (P > 0.05). The changes in VAS, heart rate, skin conductance and respiration before and after cue exposure in the control group were not significantly different from those before treatment (P > 0.05).
conclusionVirtual reality-based cue exposure therapy can reduce the psychological craving and part of the physiological responses of alcohol-dependent patients during cue exposure in the short term and may be helpful in the treatment of alcohol dependence.
trial registrationThe study protocol was registered at the China Clinical Trial Registry on 26/02/2021 ( www.chictr.org.cn ; ChiCTR ID: ChiCTR2100043680).
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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 OpenQuestion graph.