Amphetamine analogs methamphetamine and 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) differentially affect speech.
BACKGROUND
Most reports of the effects of methamphetamine and 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) on speech have been anecdotal.


OBJECTIVE
The current study used a within-participant design to assess the effects of methamphetamine and MDMA on speech.


METHODS
Eleven recreational users of amphetamines completed this inpatient, within-participant, double-blind study, during which they received placebo, methamphetamine (20, 40 mg), and MDMA (100 mg) on separate days. Following drug administration, study participants described movies viewed the previous evening and completed mood scales.


RESULTS
Methamphetamine increased quantity of speech, fluency, and self-ratings of talkativeness and alertness, while it decreased the average duration of nonjuncture unfilled pauses. MDMA decreased fluency and increased self-ratings of inability to concentrate. To determine if methamphetamine- and MDMA-related effects were perceptible, undergraduates listened to the participants' movie descriptions and rated their coherence and the speaker's mood. Following methamphetamine, descriptions were judged to be more coherent and focused than they were following MDMA.


CONCLUSIONS
Methamphetamine improved verbal fluency and MDMA adversely affected fluency. This pattern of effects is consistent with the effects of these drugs on functioning in other cognitive domains. In general, methamphetamine effects on speech were inconsistent with effects popularly attributed to this drug, while MDMA-related effects were in agreement with some anecdotal reports and discordant with others.
Marrone
Gina F
GF
Division of Substance Abuse, New York State Psychiatric Institute, 1051 Riverside Dr., Unit 120, New York, NY 10032, USA.
Pardo
Jennifer S
JS
Krauss
Robert M
RM
Hart
Carl L
CL
D015104:3,4-Methylenedioxyamphetamine / Q000097:blood / Q000494:pharmacology*; D000328:Adult; D000339:Affect / Q000187:drug effects; D001143:Arousal / Q000187:drug effects; D001288:Attention / Q000187:drug effects; D000697:Central Nervous System Stimulants / Q000097:blood / Q000494:pharmacology*; D004311:Double-Blind Method; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008694:Methamphetamine / Q000097:blood / Q000494:pharmacology*; D012649:Self Concept; D013060:Speech / Q000187:drug effects*; D013065:Speech Intelligibility / Q000187:drug effects; D055815:Young Adult
D000697:Central Nervous System Stimulants; D008694:Methamphetamine; D015104:3,4-Methylenedioxyamphetamine