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Prev Med. 2009 Jun;48(6):604-5; author reply 606-7.
The effectiveness of a school-based substance abuse prevention program: EU-Dap cluster randomised controlled trial.
Faggiano F,
Galanti MR,
Bohrn K,
Burkhart G,
Vigna-Taglianti F,
Cuomo L,
Fabiani L,
Panella M,
Perez T,
Siliquini R,
van der Kreeft P,
Vassara M,
Wiborg G;
EU-Dap Study Group.
Collaborators (22)
Siliquini R, Zunino B, Siliquini V, Cuomo L, Vigna-Taglianti F, Vitale L, van der Kreeft P, Coppens E, Melero JC, Perez T, Varona L, Wiborg G, Yotsidi V, Richardson C, Vassara M, Galanti MR, Lindahl AM, Burkhart G, Faggiano F, Panella M, Fabiani L, Scatigna M.
Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine-Avogadro University, Novara, Italy. fabrizio.faggiano@med.unipmn.it
OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the effectiveness of the school-based drug abuse prevention program developed in the EU-Dap study (EUropean Drug Abuse Prevention trial) in preventing the use of tobacco, alcohol and drugs at the post-test. METHODS: Cluster Randomised Controlled Trial. Seven European countries participated in the study; 170 schools (7079 pupils 12-14 years of age) were randomly assigned to one of three experimental conditions or to a control condition during the school year 2004/2005. A pre-test survey assessing past and current substance use was conducted before the implementation of the program. The program consisted in 12-hour class-based curriculum based on a comprehensive social-influence approach. A post-test survey was carried out in all participating schools, 3 months after the end of the program. The association between program condition and change in substance use at post-test was expressed as adjusted Prevalence Odds Ratio (POR), estimated by multilevel regression model. RESULTS: Program effects were found for daily cigarette smoking (POR=0.70; 0.52-0.94) and episodes of drunkenness in the past 30 days (POR=0.72; 0.58-0.90 for at least one episode, POR=0.69; 0.48-0.99 for three or more episodes), while effects on Cannabis use in the past 30 days were of marginal statistical significance (POR=0.77; 0.60-1.00). The curriculum was successful in preventing baseline non-smokers or sporadic smokers from moving onto daily smoking, but it was not effective in helping baseline daily smokers to reduce or stop smoking. CONCLUSION: School curricula based on a comprehensive social-influence model may delay progression to daily smoking and episodes of drunkenness.
PMID: 18657569 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]