title: The effects of acute treatment with tandospirone, diazepam, and placebo on driving performance and cognitive function in healthy volunteers.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To assess the effects of two anxiolytics, diazepam and tandospirone, on driving performance from methodological viewpoints taking frequent rear-end collisions into account.
  
  
  METHODS
  In this double-blinded, three-way crossover trial, 18 healthy males received acute doses of 20 mg tandospirone (TSP), 5 mg diazepam (DZP), and placebo (PCB). The subjects were administered three driving tasks-road tracking, car following, and harsh braking-performed using a driving simulator and three cognitive tasks-Wisconsin Card Sorting Test, Continuous Performance Test, and N-back test-at baseline and at 1 and 4 h post-dosing. The Stanford Sleepiness Scale scores were also assessed.
  
  
  RESULTS
  DZP nonsignificantly increased the percent change of brake reaction time (BRT) as compared to PCB at 4 h post-dosing. TSP nonsignificantly decreased the percent change of BRT as compared to PCB. Consequently, there was a significant difference in the percent change of BRT between DZP and TSP at 4 h post-dosing. For the remaining tasks, no statistically significant effects of treatment were observed.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Acute doses of DZP significantly impaired the harsh-braking performance as compared to acute doses of TSP. These findings suggest that TSP may be used more safely in patients' driving activities.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, Graduate School of Medicine, Nagoya University, Nagoya, Aichi, Japan.
authors.forename: Masahiro
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Takahashi
authors.forename: Kunihiro
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Iwamoto
authors.forename: Yukiko
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Kawamura
authors.forename: Yukako
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Nakamura
authors.forename: Ryoko
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Ishihara
authors.forename: Yuji
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Uchiyama
authors.forename: Kazutoshi
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Ebe
authors.forename: Akiko
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Noda
authors.forename: Yukihiro
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Noda
authors.forename: Keizo
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Yoshida
authors.forename: Tetsuya
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Iidaka
authors.forename: Norio
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Ozaki
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001334:Automobile Driving / Q000523:psychology; D003071:Cognition / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000502:physiology; D018592:Cross-Over Studies; D003975:Diazepam / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000009:adverse effects; D004311:Double-Blind Method; D006801:Humans; D054833:Isoindoles / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000009:adverse effects; D008297:Male; D010879:Piperazines / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000009:adverse effects; D011597:Psychomotor Performance / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000502:physiology; D011743:Pyrimidines / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000009:adverse effects; D011930:Reaction Time / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology; D013997:Time Factors
chemical_list: D054833:Isoindoles; D010879:Piperazines; D011743:Pyrimidines; C055267:tandospirone; D003975:Diazepam