Effects on Learning and Memory of 2-Week Treatments with
Chlordiazepoxide Lactam, N-Desmethyldiazepam, Oxazepam
and Methyloxazepam, Alone or in Combination with Alcohol

Liljequist, R.; Palva, Erkki; Linnoila, Markku

doi:10.1159/000468381

Cited by 15 publications

(8 citation statements)

References 9 publications

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“…Although the low doses of some of the BZ medications may not have been expected to cause large impairment of these behaviors, these doses are commonly recommended for medical treatment and indicate that the chronic users probably do not experience such behavioral impairment as a function of their clinical use. The finding that performance on many of the behavior tests used in the present study was not impaired following the chronic use of BZ medications is in agreement with studies that have demonstrated tolerance following the regular use of BZs for just a few weeks in normal volunteers with similar tasks (Aranko et al 1983;Liljequist et al 1979). The lack of impairment found on the DSST and symbol copying tests in the present study is especially significant, because Petursson et al (1983) reported that these behaviors were impaired in chronic BZ users.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 92%

Chronic use of benzodiazepines and psychomotor and cognitive test performance

1986

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The performance of 43 long-term users (average = 5 years) of benzodiazepine (BZ) medications was examined on a battery of behavioral tasks, cognitive tests, and subjective mood rating scales. The performance of the chronic BZ users did not differ significantly from age- and sex-matched anxious subjects, except that critical flicker fusion (CFF) thresholds were lower and subjective ratings of tranquilization were higher in the BZ users. Twenty-two subjects were reexamined in order to determine the acute effects of BZ medications in long-term users. The acute administration of BZ medications significantly increased CFF thresholds, improved digit-symbol substitution test performance, impaired the delayed recall of verbal material, increased subjective ratings of tranquilization, and reduced physical sedation. Motor performance tests were not impaired and subjective feelings of sedation were not increased after the acute administration of BZs by chronic users. During withdrawal from long-term BZ use (17 subjects), CFF thresholds were elevated, subjective ratings of physical sedation and anxiety were increased, but performance on other psychomotor and cognitive tests was not altered. The results suggest that tolerance develops selectively to different behavioral and subjective effects of BZ medications with their continued use. Tolerance failed to develop to the antianxiety effects, the reduction of CFF threshold, and to the impairment of short-term memory caused by BZs. However, chronic users of BZ medications failed to demonstrate psychomotor-impairing or sedating effects to BZ medications. The results have implications for evaluating the safety of the long-term use of BZ medications.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 92%

Chronic use of benzodiazepines and psychomotor and cognitive test performance

1986

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“…Of the modern psychoactive drugs a number act as sedative agents and are potentiated by alcohol. The combination of benzodiazepines and alcohol has been shown to elicit additive or supra-additive eects on cognitive function (notably memory) and psychomotor performance (Morland et al, 1974;Liljequist et al, 1979;Subhan, 1983, 1986;Subhan and Hindmarch, 1983;Starmer and Bird, 1984), although the various benzodiazepine derivatives dier in the extent to which they impair performance and interact with alcohol. A similar variability in the eects of combinations of antidepressants and alcohol has been found, with some drugs, like mianserin, dothiepin and amitriptyline, having a highly sedating eect in combination with alcohol, and others, e.g.…”

Section: Alcohol In Combination With Other Psychoactive Drugsmentioning

confidence: 99%

The effects of alcohol alone or in combination with other drugs on information processing, task performance and subjective responses

Kerr

Hindmarch

1998

Hum. Psychopharmacol. Clin. Exp.

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This paper reviews the effects of alcohol on human psychomotor performance and cognitive function. It concentrates particularly on effects on reaction time and on skills related to car driving. The effects of alcohol on performance are very variable at low doses (under 1 g per kg body weight). The variability is due to the different measures and methods employed by the researchers and to the large interindividual and interoccasional differences in the effects of alcohol. That is, alcohol affects different people in different ways and it affects the same person differently on separate occasions. Greater performance deficits are observed as the dose increases and as the tasks become more complex. Although results vary, both nicotine and caffeine appear to antagonize the detrimental effects of alcohol on performance. Many other drugs interact with alcohol, the most important of which are sedative agents that can combine synergistically with alcohol to produce profound psychomotor and cognitive impairment. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

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“…The combination of alcohol and benzodiazepines has been shown to elicit additive or supra-additive effects on tests of memory and related congitive function [Morland et al, 1974;Liljequist et al, 1979], although the various benzodiazepine derivatives differ in the extent to which they impair memory and interact with alcohol.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Effects of Midazolam in Conjunction with Alcohol on Iconic Memory and Free-Recall

Subhan¹,

Hindmarch²

1983

Neuropsychobiology

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The effects of midazolam 15 mg and alcohol 0.5 g/kg on short-term storage in the visual system (iconic memory) and free recall of a word list were investigated in 8 normal volunteers. Acute doses of midazolam, alcohol and midazolam in combination with alcohol were all found to decrease iconic memory whereas only midazolam and midazolam + alcohol impaired immediate recall. Anterograde amnesia was observed following treatment with midazolam and midazolam in conjunction with alcohol. The results suggest a potentiation of the effects of midazolam, on aspects of human memory by the co-administration of small doses of alcohol.

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Effects on Learning and Memory of 2-Week Treatments with Chlordiazepoxide Lactam, N-Desmethyldiazepam, Oxazepam and Methyloxazepam, Alone or in Combination with Alcohol

Cited by 15 publications

References 9 publications

Chronic use of benzodiazepines and psychomotor and cognitive test performance

Chronic use of benzodiazepines and psychomotor and cognitive test performance

The effects of alcohol alone or in combination with other drugs on information processing, task performance and subjective responses

The Effects of Midazolam in Conjunction with Alcohol on Iconic Memory and Free-Recall

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