title: Therapeutic doses of diazepam do not alter impulsive behavior in humans.
abstract: This study examined the effects of low, therapeutic doses of diazepam on several measures of impulsive behavior in healthy volunteers. Volunteers (N=35) participated in a three-session double-blind randomized design in which they received diazepam (5 or 10 mg) or placebo. The volunteers were classified as high and low impulsive based on the Barratt Impulsiveness Scale-11 (BIS-11). One hour after ingesting the capsule on each session, participants completed mood questionnaires and five impulsivity tasks: go/no-go task, delay discounting task, time estimation task, stop task, and the balloon analogue risk task (BART). Diazepam (5 and 10 mg) produced its prototypic sedative-like mood effects. However, the drug did not affect performance on any of the measures of impulsive behavior in either the high or low BIS participants. These results suggest that low doses of diazepam, including doses that are used therapeutically, do not increase impulsive behavior. Whether higher doses would increase impulsivity remains to be determined.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, The University of Chicago, MC3077, 5841 S. Maryland Avenue, Chicago, IL 60637, USA.
authors.forename: Brady
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Reynolds
authors.forename: Jerry B
authors.initials: JB
authors.lastname: Richards
authors.forename: Michelle
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Dassinger
authors.forename: Harriet
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: de Wit
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000339:Affect / Q000187:drug effects; D014151:Anti-Anxiety Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D003975:Diazepam / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D004311:Double-Blind Method; D005260:Female; D006439:Hemodynamics / Q000187:drug effects; D006801:Humans; D007175:Impulsive Behavior / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000523:psychology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests; D010556:Personality Tests; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires
chemical_list: D014151:Anti-Anxiety Agents; D003975:Diazepam