Effects of alcohol on psychomotor performance and perceived impairment in heavy binge social drinkers

Abstract

Alcohol intoxication often results in negative consequences; however, specific behavioral and subjective effects vary as a function of individual differences. The present study utilized an alcohol challenge paradigm to examine whether heavy binge social drinkers (HD; n=77), compared to light social drinkers (LD; n=55), exhibit: (1) greater tolerance in psychomotor task performance under the influence of alcohol, and (2) differential perceptions of the impairing effects of alcohol. The study included three test sessions in which participants consumed either a low (0.4 g/kg) or a high (0.8 g/kg) dose of ethanol or a placebo beverage administered in random order and counterbalanced within group. Participants completed the Digit-Symbol Substitution Task (DSST) and the Grooved Pegboard at pre-drink baseline and at multiple time points after beverage consumption. They also completed a scale of perceived impairment at several intervals after beverage consumption. Ethanol impaired performance at the high dose, but not at the low dose (ps<.001). The groups exhibited similar alcohol-induced impairment. However, HD reported lower self-perceived impairment compared to LD, particularly during the early portion of the blood alcohol curve when actual impairment was most pronounced (p<.001). Thus, this study extends prior research in that habitual binge social drinking does not appear to be associated with tolerance to alcohol's impairing effects on select psychomotor skills. Further, results may have implications for alcohol-related harm as binge social drinkers regularly consume intoxicating doses of alcohol but may not be aware of the physical and cognitive impairments produced by alcohol.

Acute and Chronic Effects of Alcohol on Trail Making Test Performance Among Underage Drinkers in a Field Setting

“…Previous research has indicated that visuomotor performance is affected by acute alcohol intoxication (Brumback et al, 2007), although this may be the case only for older drinkers. Animal model research implicates adolescence as a time in which individuals are insensitive to the motor-impairing aspects of alcohol (Ramirez and Spear, 2010;White et al, 2002), and our fi ndings could refl ect a similar insensitivity in our sample of underage youth.…”

Effects of Alcohol on Simulated Driving and Perceived Driving Impairment in Binge Drinkers

“…In addition, the binge drinkers reported feeling more stimulated by the 0.65 g ⁄ kg dose of alcohol compared to the nonbinge drinkers. Brumback et al (2007) also reported that binge drinkers felt less impaired by an acute dose of alcohol, despite similar levels of alcohol-induced impairment as lighter social drinkers on a digit-symbol substitution task and a grooved pegboard task. If binge drinkers are more stimulated by alcohol, they may feel more bravado and be more willing to drive, despite intoxication.…”

Alcohol Levels Do Not Accurately Predict Physical or Mental Impairment in Ethanol-Tolerant Subjects: Relevance to Emergency Medicine and Dram Shop Laws

“…Repeated exposure to alcohol may result in not only physiologic tolerance but behavioral tolerance, a neuroadaptive process resulting in a diminished behavioral response to a given alcohol level. While controlled studies of light to moderate drinkers have demonstrated the alcohol tolerance phenomenon, there has been scant scientific investigation of subjects who are chronic heavy drinkers who appear to have massive alcohol tolerance [15][16][17][18] The behavioral and subjective effects from any given alcohol level vary widely in the general population. Prior studies have demonstrated that moderate female drinkers of alcohol (about 35 drinks per month) demonstrated a reduced response to a given amount of alcohol ingestion compared to light drinkers (about seven drinks per month) and were viewed as less impaired following similar alcohol consumption.…”