# Brief Acceptance and Commitment Therapy for HIV-Infected At-Risk Drinkers

> **NIH NIH R34** · SYRACUSE UNIVERSITY · 2020 · $213,730

## Abstract

Abstract
Alcohol consumption at hazardous levels is associated with negative consequences on nearly every step of the
HIV care continuum. It is a critical factor in HIV treatment that, if unaddressed, significantly contributes to
onward transmission and poor treatment outcomes. Alcohol interventions for people living with HIV (PLWH) in
the United States (US) have shown mixed results, and no alcohol intervention for PLHW has shown long-term
reductions in heavy drinking or a significant impact on HIV-related outcomes. One hypothesized reason for this
limited success is the failure of these interventions to address the multiple overlapping problems (e.g., co-
morbid mental health conditions, behavioral health needs) of PLWH who are hazardous drinkers. Innovative
alcohol intervention strategies that can have an impact on these multiple behavioral health needs, in a format
that can be feasibly delivered in the context of HIV care, are needed. Brief Acceptance and Commitment
Therapy (ACT) is a promising intervention for HIV-infected hazardous drinkers. ACT is a transdiagnostic
treatment that uses mindfulness skills and values-guided behavioral action plans to impact a broad array of
psychological symptoms. ACT has shown efficacy for treatment of anxiety, depression, chronic pain, and
substance use, making it a promising approach for hazardous drinkers. The overall objective of this application
is to adapt an existing brief ACT intervention developed for smoking cessation, and pilot test its feasibility and
acceptability for PLWH who are hazardous drinkers. We hypothesize that the resulting intervention will be
preliminarily associated with decreased alcohol use, improved ART adherence, decreased symptoms of
depression, anxiety, and drug use, and increased acceptance—a known mechanism of change in ACT. The
specific aims are as follows: Aim 1—we will adapt an existing brief ACT intervention for HIV-infected
hazardous drinkers (ACT-AU). We will accomplish this aim by: Modifying a 5-session, telephone-delivered ACT
intervention for smoking cessation via iterative multidisciplinary team meetings, focus group discussions with
HIV clinic patients (N = 15-20), and qualitative interviews with HIV clinic providers (N = 5-10). Aim 2—we will
conduct a pilot comparative effectiveness randomized clinical trial (RCT) of ACT-AU compared to a brief
alcohol intervention previously shown to reduce drinking days among HIV-infected women. We will accomplish
this aim by: Randomly assigning N = 74 HIV-infected hazardous drinkers (50% women) to the intervention
developed in Aim 1, or a brief alcohol intervention similar in length and frequency of treatment sessions. We
will assess feasibility, acceptability, and preliminary trial outcomes. Alcohol use and ART adherence will be
assessed via both self-report and biomarkers at 6-weeks and 6-months post-randomization; preliminary
changes in acceptance as well as symptoms of anxiety and depression, and drug use will also be examin...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 9883696
- **Project number:** 5R34AA026246-03
- **Recipient organization:** SYRACUSE UNIVERSITY
- **Principal Investigator:** STEPHEN A MAISTO
- **Activity code:** R34 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $213,730
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2018-03-15 → 2023-02-28

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/9883696

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 9883696, Brief Acceptance and Commitment Therapy for HIV-Infected At-Risk Drinkers (5R34AA026246-03). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-27 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/9883696. Licensed CC0.

---

*[NIH grants dataset](/datasets/nih-grants) · CC0 1.0*