Adial Pharmaceuticals hosts KOL webinar on alcohol use disorder

Adial Pharmaceuticals hosted a virtual key opinion leader webinar with addiction experts Joseph Volpicelli, M.D., Ph.D., Executive Director and Founder of the Volpicelli Center; and Jonathan Hunt-Glassman, MBA, Chief Executive Officer and Co-founder of Oar Health, to discuss alcohol use disorder, the current treatment landscape, and the need for non-abstinence-based therapeutics. Both experts are nationally recognized for their efforts in providing improved treatment options to patients with AUD. The key opinion leaders emphasized that there is a substantial patient need for medications to treat AUD, yet current medications are not being prescribed or utilized by most treating physicians. There are only three FDA-approved medications for the treatment of AUD, and of the approximately 30 million individuals with AUD, only about 0.1% are given a prescription for one of these medications. Among the patients in treatment with these medications, adherence is a significant concern, with side effects being a common reason given for stopping the medication. To improve engagement in medical treatment, the key opinion leaders expressed the belief that barriers to treatment could be reduced by giving people additional options such as non-abstinence-based therapies. A non-abstinence-based treatment approach will provide patients with the power to choose more realistic goals of reducing alcohol consumption rather than abstinence. Reductions in excessive drinking, even without complete abstinence, can have a major public health impact on morbidity and mortality associated with AUD.