Acute effects of alcohol intake on impulsivity and heart rate in youth with or without a family history of alcohol abuse

CANETO F; PILATTI A; PAUTASSI R.M.

Valencia

Congreso; 15th Congress of the European Society for Biomedical Research on Alcoholism (ESBRA); 2015

European Society for Biomedical Research on Alcoholism (ESBRA)

his study analyzed, in youth (18-30 years old) with or without afamily history of alcohol abuse (FH+ and FH-, respectively), the effectof an acute dose of alcohol on impulsivity, risk taking, heart rate, andon the subjective response to alcohol. The Balloon Analogue RiskTask and the Time Production were used to measure risk takingand impulsivity, whereas the Brief Biphasic Alcohol Effects Scale(bBAES) and an ergometer were employed to assess the autonomic(i.e, hearth rate) and subjective effects of alcohol intoxication. A 2(FH + , FH-) x 2 (treatment [alcohol or placebo]) factorial designwas employed. Participants (n = 51) were tested before and afterdrinking a placebo solution or a dose of alcohol corresponding to ablood alcohol concentration of 0.08g/l. FH+ and FH- exhibit similarperformance on the Time Production Task performance and similarbBAES scores, yet only FH+ subjects exhibited a significant incrementof heart rate following the administration of alcohol. Moreover, participants treated with alcohol, but not those in the placebo condition,showed greater risk and impulsivity scores in the BART. The interaction between ethanol treatment and family history bordered statistical significance (i.e., p = .07), suggesting that alcohol increased risktaking and impulsivity only in FH+ subjects. To the extent that thestimulant effects of alcohol are a proxy for the reinforcing effect ofethanol, the results suggests that FHP are at higher risk for developingalcohol use disorders than FHN counterparts. These results add further evidence of the greater vulnerability of young FHP to developproblems with alcohol.