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. 2014 Feb 13;2014(2):CD008544. doi: 10.1002/14651858.CD008544.pub2

Mueller 1997.

Methods Randomised placebo‐controlled double‐blind study
Participants 29 participants; mean age 38.7 years; 60% male; 90% Caucasian; 50% married; 24 years on average age of alcoholism onset; all alcohol dependents (16 drinks/drinking day on average)
Inclusion criteria: adults with alcohol abuse or dependence as defined in the DSM‐III‐R (APA 1987) admitted for treatment of alcohol withdrawal
Exclusion criteria: younger than 18 years old; prior or current history of epilepsy (excluding alcohol withdrawal seizures); existing pregnancy or consideration thereof within the next year; major cognitive limitations that would impair consent; psychosis; allergy to carbamazepine; cirrhosis; liver function tests elevated more than 2.5 times the upper limits of normal; cardiomyopathy or arrhythmia; history of immune compromise; medical conditions requiring active medical pharmacological management; current use of or withdrawal from opiates, benzodiazepines or barbiturates; lack of a significant other who could corroborate the participant's self‐report
Interventions (1) Carbamazepine, 13 participants; (2) placebo, 16 participants
Drug dose: carbamazepine 600 mg/d verifying blood concentration to be close to 6 mg/L.
Setting: inpatient for around five days, then outpatient
Duration: 12 months. Country of origin: USA
Outcomes Retention in treatment; drinking behaviour (mean time to first drink, mean time to return to heavy drinking, drinks per drinking day and maximum number of heavy drinking days); mood and functioning; side effects
Notes Treatment started after alcohol detoxification
Risk of bias
Bias Authors' judgement Support for judgement
Random sequence generation (selection bias) Low risk Participants randomly assigned by a biostatistician (urn randomisation)
Allocation concealment (selection bias) Low risk Dispensing pharmacist aware of medication group assignment; however did not interact with participants
Incomplete outcome data (attrition bias) 
 All outcomes Low risk Intention‐to‐treat analysis and last point carried forward analysis applied
Blinding of participants and personnel (performance bias) 
 all outcomes Low risk Double‐blind stated; measures adopted to protect blindness of participants and personnel. Dispensing pharmacist aware of medication group assignment but did not interact with participants
Blinding of outcome assessment (detection bias) 
 subjective Low risk Double‐blind stated; measures adopted to protect blindness of outcome assessors
Blinding of outcome assessment (detection bias) 
 objective Low risk Double‐blind stated; measures adopted to protect blindness of outcome assessors