NCT01179425

Sex Differences in Attentional Bias in Marijuana-dependent Individuals

Sex Differences in Attentional Bias and Cognitive Functioning in Response to Stress in Marijuana-dependent Individuals

• Status: Completed
• Phase: N/A
• Study type: Interventional
• Enrollment: 40 (actual)
• Sponsor: Medical University of South Carolina · Academic / Other
• Sex: All
• Age: 18 Years – 65 Years
• Healthy volunteers: Accepted

Summary

The purpose of this study is to explore sex differences in cognitive functioning and responses to marijuana-related items, and to determine whether stress impacts these measures. Hypothesis 1: Attentional bias will be greater for marijuana cues in male marijuana-dependent subjects relative to female marijuana-dependent or non-dependent male controls. Hypothesis 2: Marijuana-dependent females will exhibit greater stress-induced changes in attentional bias and cognitive functioning than marijuana-dependent males.

Detailed description

Ample evidence implicates both environmental cues and negative affective states in maintaining drug use or triggering relapse. However, although 'craving' is believed to drive continued drug use, it is not well understood how cognitive processes influence craving and relapse, nor how they may differ between the sexes. Therefore, the goal of this study protocol is to provide insight into sex differences in the cognitive aspects of drug craving and to assess the impact of stress on attentional bias for drug-related cues as well as on the availability of cognitive resources.

Conditions

• Marijuana Dependence

Interventions

Type	Name	Description
OTHER	Cognitive stressor	The Paced Auditory Serial Addition Task (PASAT-C), has been modified for use as a computerized laboratory-based stressor. Single digits are presented, and the patient must add each new digit to the one immediately prior to it and click on the appropriate answer. Failure to do so in the allotted time results in a noxious error sound.

Timeline

• Start date: 2009-08-01
• Primary completion: 2011-02-01
• Completion: 2011-02-01
• First posted: 2010-08-11
• Last updated: 2011-04-14

Locations

1 site across 1 country: United States