Evaluation of a Virtual Reality-based Version of the Multiple Errands Test in Alcohol Use Disorder (EVIMETAL)

Evaluation of a Virtual Reality-based Version of the Multiple Errands Test for the Assessment of Executive Functions in Alcohol Use Disorder

The goal of this study is to validate the virtual version of the Multiple Errands Test (V-MET) as a tool for assessing executive functions in patients with alcohol use disorder (AUD).

More specifically, the project aims to:

1. evaluate if the performance in the virtual version of the test is related to the performance in the original test in patients with AUD.
2. establish whether the virtual version of the test is sensitive enough to detect patients with or without an executive function deficit.

All participants will perform the original version (in a real-life supermarket) and the virtual version of the test (in a virtual reality environment).

Performance in the two versions of the test will be compared. Participants will also complete a battery of neuropsychological tests and questionnaires.

Study Overview

• Status: Not yet recruiting
• Conditions: Alcohol Use Disorder (AUD)
• Intervention / Treatment: Behavioral: Multiple Errand Test (MET); Behavioral: Virtual MET

Detailed Description

The project aims to validate the virtual version of the Multiple Errands Test (V-MET) as a tool for assessing executive function in patients with alcohol use disorder (AUD), in comparison to the original test (MET), by:

1. establishing the ecological validity of the V-MET: a high correlation between performance on the MET and performance on the V-MET (total number of errors) in patients with TUAL and executive dysfunction.
2. establishing the sensitivity of the V-MET (to executive dysfunction): significant difference between V-MET performance in patients with an AUD and executive dysfunction versus (a) patients without executive dysfunction and (b) "healthy" volunteers

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Estimated): 90
• Phase: Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

• Study Contact: Name: Méline Devaluez, PhD; Phone Number: +33437915514; Email: meline.devaluez@ch-le-vinatier.fr
• Study Contact Backup: Name: Louis-Ferdinand LESPINE, PhD; Phone Number: +33437915155; Email: Louis-ferdinand.LESPINE@ch-le-vinatier.fr

Study Locations

• France
  • Bron, France, 69500
    • CH le Vinatier
  • Lyon, France, 69004
    • Hopital de la croix rousse
    • Contact: Louis-Ferdinand LESPINE, PhD; Phone Number: 0033437915514; Email: Louis-ferdinand.LESPINE@ch-le-vinatier.fr

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: Adult; Older Adult
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: Yes

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• written consent
• Normal or corrected vision and hearing
• Membership or entitlement to a social security plan
• spoken and written French
• third party liability insurance

for patients only :

• at least 6 criteria for AUD based on the Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders
• At the end of withdrawal: treatment with a diazepam equivalent of ≤ 20 mg/day

Exclusion Criteria:

• under tutorship/ judicial protection
• Sensory or motor impairment (impeding the use of virtual reality and/or mobility)
• Severe neurological disorder (such as dementia or Korsakoff's syndrome)
• Photosensitive epilepsy (contraindication for the use of virtual reality)
• Any other condition deemed incompatible with the study, at the investigator's discretion
• Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) score < 10 (severe cognitive impairment)
• Breastfeeding or pregnant women
• Familiarity with the supermarket visited during the MET test

For controls only :

• History of alcohol use disorder
• score ≥ 8 on the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test
• Score on the Frontal Assessment Battery < 16 (or < 15 if education is below secondary level)

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: Other
• Allocation: Non-Randomized
• Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
• Masking: None (Open Label)

Number of Arms

3

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: AUD group with executive function deficit; Group of patients with alcohol use disorder and a deficit in executive functions as assessed by the Frontal Assessment Battery	Behavioral: Multiple Errand Test (MET); The test takes place in a real supermarket. Participants must complete a list of tasks (e.g., purchasing certain items, collecting some information) while adhering to rules (e.g., not visiting the same place twice, etc).; Behavioral: Virtual MET; The test takes place in a virtual supermarket, developed on the C2Neuro app by C2CARE®. Participants must complete a similar list of tasks to the MET (e.g., purchasing certain items, collecting some information) and adhere to similar to rules (e.g., not visiting the same place twice, etc) .
Active Comparator: AUD group without executive function deficit; Group of patients with alcohol use disorder but without a deficit in executive functions as assessed by the Frontal Assessment Battery	Behavioral: Multiple Errand Test (MET); The test takes place in a real supermarket. Participants must complete a list of tasks (e.g., purchasing certain items, collecting some information) while adhering to rules (e.g., not visiting the same place twice, etc).; Behavioral: Virtual MET; The test takes place in a virtual supermarket, developed on the C2Neuro app by C2CARE®. Participants must complete a similar list of tasks to the MET (e.g., purchasing certain items, collecting some information) and adhere to similar to rules (e.g., not visiting the same place twice, etc) .
Active Comparator: Control group; Group of healthy volunteers	Behavioral: Multiple Errand Test (MET); The test takes place in a real supermarket. Participants must complete a list of tasks (e.g., purchasing certain items, collecting some information) while adhering to rules (e.g., not visiting the same place twice, etc).; Behavioral: Virtual MET; The test takes place in a virtual supermarket, developed on the C2Neuro app by C2CARE®. Participants must complete a similar list of tasks to the MET (e.g., purchasing certain items, collecting some information) and adhere to similar to rules (e.g., not visiting the same place twice, etc) .

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Total number of errors on the test	Total number of errors on the MET and the V-MET. Errors include: Inefficiencies (a more effective action could have been made); Rule breaks: a specific rule is broken; Interpretation failure (the task is misunderstood or misinterpreted); Task failure: not carried out or not completely completed	Baseline

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Inefficiencies on the test	Inefficiencies on the MET/V-MET : a more effective action could have been made Can be infinite	Baseline
Rule breaks on the test	Rule breaks on the MET / V-MET : a specific rule is broken	Baseline
Task failures on the test	Task failures on the MET / V-MET : task not carried out or not completely completed	Baseline
Interpretation failures on the test	Interpretation failures on the MET/V-MET : the task is misunderstood or misinterpreted	Baseline

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: Hôpital le Vinatier
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: Christophe ICARD, MD, CH le Vinatier

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Estimated): May 1, 2026
• Primary Completion (Estimated): June 1, 2028
• Study Completion (Estimated): June 1, 2028

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: May 12, 2026
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: May 12, 2026
• First Posted (Actual): May 18, 2026

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): May 20, 2026
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: May 18, 2026
• Last Verified: May 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: Virtual reality; Alcohol Use Disorder; Executive functions; Multiple Errands Test
• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Mental Disorders; Substance-Related Disorders; Chemically-Induced Disorders; Alcohol-Related Disorders; Alcoholism
• Other Study ID Numbers: 2025-A00421-48

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

• Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?: YES

IPD Plan Description

Individual participant data (IPD) underlying the results reported in this study might be shared, including de-identified demographic data, baseline characteristics, outcome measures, and variables necessary to reproduce the analyses. All data will be fully anonymized to protect participant confidentiality. A data dictionary and relevant metadata might also be provided to facilitate interpretation and reuse.

The analytic code will be provided at the time of publication of the primary study results. De-identified IPD will be shared via an open science repository such as Open Science Framework and may also be made available upon request.

• IPD Sharing Time Frame: Data and supporting documents will be available beginning at the time of publication of the primary results
• IPD Sharing Access Criteria: Data will be made openly available
• IPD Sharing Supporting Information Type: ANALYTIC_CODE

Drug and device information, study documents

• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product: No
• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product: No