Evidence map›Paper›PMID 37724443›Full record

Trial reportJournal of psychopharmacology (Oxford, England)2023

Acute administration of alprazolam, alcohol and their combination on cognitive performance and mood: A randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled study.

Blair Aitken, Amie C Hayley, Talitha C Ford, Lauren Geier, Brook A Shiferaw, Luke A Downey

Open access · hybridAbstract readRandomized Controlled Trial
In one paragraph

Trial report in Journal of psychopharmacology (Oxford, England), 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
0.5field-weighted citation impact, top 36% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed, 3 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

6 authors at 4 institutions in 1 country.

Blair AitkenCentre for Mental Health and Brain Sciences, Swinburne University of Technology, Hawthorn, VIC, Australia.ORCID 0000-0001-7607-7344
Amie C HayleyCentre for Mental Health and Brain Sciences, Swinburne University of Technology, Hawthorn, VIC, Australia.ORCID 0000-0002-4470-4718
Talitha C FordCentre for Mental Health and Brain Sciences, Swinburne University of Technology, Hawthorn, VIC, Australia.
Lauren GeierForensic Science SA, Adelaide, SA, Australia.
Brook A ShiferawCentre for Mental Health and Brain Sciences, Swinburne University of Technology, Hawthorn, VIC, Australia.
Luke A DowneyCentre for Mental Health and Brain Sciences, Swinburne University of Technology, Hawthorn, VIC, Australia.
Institute for Breathing and Sleep · AUDeakin University · AUSouth Australia Pathology · AUSwinburne University of Technology · AU

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundRecreational co-consumption of benzodiazepines and alcohol is a common practise; yet, the cognitive effects of this combination remain poorly understood. This study aimed to investigate the acute cognitive effects of combining a 1 mg dose of alprazolam with a moderate dose of alcohol (target 0.04% blood alcohol concentration (BAC)) in a non-clinical population.

methodsIn this randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled, crossover trial, participants completed computerised cognitive assessments and the brief biphasic alcohol effects scale (B-BAES) after consuming 1 mg of alprazolam, both with and without a moderate dose of alcohol (target 0.04% BAC).

resultsAmong 20 healthy participants (mean age = 28.6, SD ± 4.0 years, 60% female), we found that a peak BAC of 0.03% had no significant impact on cognitive performance. Both the individual use of alprazolam and its combination with alcohol resulted in impaired reaction time, digit vigilance, and verbal, spatial and numeric working memory tasks, although an additive effect when alcohol and alprazolam were consumed together was not evident. The most pronounced cognitive effects occurred at 100 min after dosing, coinciding with increased alprazolam concentrations. Sedative effects were heightened with alcohol, alprazolam and their combination while no stimulative effects were reported.

conclusionsOur findings highlight the significant implications of a therapeutic dose of alprazolam on impairing cognitive performance. This is particularly relevant considering the frequency of non-medical alprazolam use. Future studies should explore different dosages, administration timings and long-term effects to inform the development of public health policies and guidelines regarding the combined use of alcohol and benzodiazepines.

Indexed as

AlprazolamBlood Alcohol ContentAdultCognitionDouble-Blind MethodEthanolFemaleHumansHypnotics and SedativesMaleAlprazolamBlood Alcohol ContentEthanolHypnotics and SedativesalcoholAlprazolambenzodiazepinescognitive performancerandomised controlled trial

Identifiers

PMID37724443
PMCPMC10714690
OpenAlexW4386843698

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.