ABSTRACT. Objective: Perceived impairment and psychomotor performance following acute alcohol administration in older (ages 50-74, n = 42; 22 male) and younger (ages 25-35, n = 26; 12 male) adults were investigated in this study. Method: Double-blind, placebo-controlled alcohol administration techniques were designed to produce peak levels of breath alcohol concentration consistent with an episode of social drinking (40 mg/100 ml). Behavioral measures (Trail Making Test, Forms A and B), as well as measures of self-reported perceived intoxication and impairment, were administered on the ascending and descending limbs at common time points after beverage ingestion. Results: Results indicated that psychomotor performance differences did not parallel self-reported levels of perceived impairment. Relative to younger adults, older adults exhibited performance defi cits on the ascending limb while simultaneously reporting less perceived impairment. Conversely, on the descending limb, older adults who received alcohol reported more perceived impairment than did those who received placebo, although psychomotor performance between these two groups of older drinkers did not differ. For younger participants, a moderate dose of alcohol facilitated performance on the ascending limb; however, these differences were not refl ected on the descending limb. Conclusions: These results reinforce the common knowledge that self-reported measures may not provide an accurate refl ection of performance outcomes and, importantly, that older adults may be impaired even under a moderate dose of alcohol, although they may not be aware (i.e., report) of this impairment. (J. Stud. Alcohol Drugs 70: [242][243][244][245][246][247][248][249][250][251][252] 2009)
This study was designed to examine the interaction of neonatal ethanol and cocaine exposure on isolation induced ultrasonic vocalizations using an oral gavage method of drug administration. There were 5 neonatal treatment groups including 3.0 g/kg ethanol, 20 mg/kg cocaine, both 3.0 g/kg ethanol and 20 mg/kg cocaine, an intubated control and a nonintubated control. Drug was administered twice daily from postnatal days (PND) 4 - 10. On PND 14, subjects were tested for a 6 min test to assess the rate and type of ultrasonic vocalizations displayed. As previously reported using an intragastric "artificial rearing" administration procedure, pups exposed to ethanol displayed reductions in the number of ultrasonic vocalizations across the test session. Pups exposed to both drugs showed similar deficits to those pups receiving ethanol alone. In contrast, cocaine had no effect on this outcome measure. Sonographic analysis of the vocalizations revealed that ethanol's effects appeared to be selective to certain waveforms rather than a general reduction across all wave types and again, cocaine had no impact on the proportion of the various wave types. These findings provide further support that neonatal ethanol exposure can have significant effects on maternal/infant communication and may play a role in many of the long-term effects associated with ethanol exposure during development.
Background Studies exploring differential effects of acute alcohol consumption on younger and older adults are lacking within the field of alcohol research, especially those using moderate doses. Previous studies addressing this question have tended to use complex behavioral tasks too broad to isolate specific neurocognitive processes affected by both alcohol and aging. Compromises in cognitive efficiency (i.e. the ability to respond both quickly and accurately) have previously been identified in both elderly and acutely intoxicated individuals. Methods The present study employed a visual-spatial, two-choice reaction time task to evaluate the interactive effects of aging and alcohol on cognitive efficiency. Our primary outcome measure was an efficiency ratio derived from each participant’s response accuracy (ACC) and mean reaction time (RT) (%correct/RT). Younger (25 – 35; n=22) and older (55 – 74; n=37) participants were randomly assigned to receive either a placebo or moderate alcohol dose intended to produce a peak BrAC of 0.04%. Participants performed the task at peak alcohol levels. Results: A significant interaction between age group and dose assignment was observed (F3,55=4.86, p=.03) for the efficiency ratio. Younger participants who received alcohol performed significantly better than did their older counterparts regardless of alcohol condition and despite no differences in performance between the two age groups in the placebo condition. Additional correlation analyses between ACC and RT suggested that moderately intoxicated older adults become more accurate as response times increase. This relationship was not observed in older adults in the placebo condition. Conclusions These data suggest that healthy individuals exhibit a differential susceptibility to the effects of alcohol depending on their age. Unfortunately, due to the presumed safety of moderate alcohol doses and a lack of studies investigating the interactive effects of acute alcohol consumption and aging, most individuals are unlikely to be aware of this relationship between alcohol consumption and age.
ABSTRACT. Objective: Placebo effectiveness and subsequent influence on cognitive performance were investigated in older moderate drinkers (ages 50-69; N = 30; 15 men) following acute alcohol administration. Method: Double-blind, placebo-controlled alcohol administration techniques were designed to produce peak breath alcohol concentration levels consistent with an episode of social drinking (~40 mg/100 ml). Cognitive performance, measured via a covert attentional processing task, was assessed. Participants were also asked to rate their perceived levels of intoxication and impairment. Results: The placebo beverage was effective in older moderate drinkers, with 63% of participants who received placebo reporting that they received alcohol. Placebo beverage effectiveness influenced cognitive performance. Participants who received placebo, but reported they received alcohol, demonstrated slower reaction times on the covert attentional processing task, similar to those receiving alcohol. Placebo effects did not influence accuracy on the covert attentional processing task or self-reported measures of intoxication and impairment. As expected, participants who received alcohol had less accuracy on the covert attentional processing task and more self-reported impairment and intoxication than those who received placebo, regardless of placebo effectiveness. Conclusions: These results suggest that belief of having received a moderate dose of alcohol has an effect on reaction time similar to that of its pharmacological effect in older moderate drinkers. Although placebo effects are not novel, these findings suggest that cognitive processes are differentially affected. The study of moderate doses and more complex real-world tasks is an important next step. (J.
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