Can a text-and-therapy program keep liver transplant patients sober?
NCT ID NCT03845205
First seen Jun 24, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026 · Updated 1 time
Summary
This study tests whether a combined computer- and counselor-delivered alcohol treatment program can help people who receive an early liver transplant for severe alcoholic hepatitis stay alcohol-free. Researchers will compare this program to standard care in 200 participants, tracking alcohol use, mood, quality of life, and survival for 12 months after transplant.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- behavioral intervention (computerized brief intervention, online therapy, text messaging)
- What this could lead to
- If successful, this could provide an effective way to help people avoid alcohol relapse after a liver transplant for alcoholic hepatitis, improving long-term health and survival.
- What could go wrong
- This is a relatively small, early-stage behavioral trial. The intervention may not be more effective than standard care, and results may not apply to all patients. Relapse remains a real risk.
This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.
Study facts
What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.
- Phase
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Not a phased trial
Phase numbers describe drug development. The registry uses this when they do not apply, as it does for trials of devices, procedures or behaviour changes, and for observational studies.
- Participants
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About 200 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Started
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Nov 2020
- Expected to finish
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Jun 2027
An estimate. End dates often move.
- Lead sponsor
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Other sponsor
The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.
Who can take part
This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.
- Ages
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18 years and older
- Sex
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Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
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Not accepted
This study is not open to healthy volunteers. The entry requirements below say who it is open to.
Show the full entry requirements Hide the full entry requirements
Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.
Inclusion Criteria: * English speaking Exclusion Criteria: * too medically/psychiatrically ill to participate * not able to provide informed consent due to cognitive impairment
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Conditions
The condition(s) this trial relates to.
As listed by the trial registrant
The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.
How to take part
Only the study team decides who joins. These are the ways to reach them.
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The places running it
1 site. The list below names each one and where it is.
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The official record
ClinicalTrials.gov lists the study team's own contact details, including names and phone numbers. We don't republish those.
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A doctor treating you
A doctor who knows your case can contact a study site on your behalf, and can tell you whether this study is worth pursuing at all.
Contacts and locations
Locations
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Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine
RECRUITINGBaltimore, Maryland, 21205, United States
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Other studies related to the condition(s) this trial covers.
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- A blood test could map how the liver heals after alcohol damage
- Can MDMA plus therapy help veterans fight both PTSD and alcohol addiction?
- Brain scans probe opioid receptor imbalance in alcohol use disorder