Ecstasy (MDMA) exposure and neuropsychological functioning: a polydrug perspective. J Int Neuropsychol Soc 2005 Oct;11(6):753-65
Date
10/27/2005Pubmed ID
16248911DOI
10.1017/S1355617705050915Scopus ID
2-s2.0-27744478571 (requires institutional sign-in at Scopus site) 26 CitationsAbstract
Ecstasy (MDMA) is a popular drug that can act as a selective serotonin neurotoxin in several species. The goal of the present study was to examine the relationship between ecstasy exposure and cognitive functioning after controlling for other drug use and demographic variables. Furthermore, we assessed whether gender was a moderator of the relationship between cognitive functioning and ecstasy use. Data were collected from 31 men and 34 women with a wide range of ecstasy use (17 marijuana users with no ecstasy use and 48 ecstasy users ranging from low to heavy use). Participants were interviewed and administered a battery of neuropsychological tests. The primary finding was that ecstasy exposure was significantly related to poorer verbal learning and memory ability in a dose-dependent manner, while no such relationship was observed between ecstasy exposure and executive functioning or attentional ability. Gender was found to significantly moderate the relationship between ecstasy consumption and design fluency. These results suggest primary memory dysfunction among abstinent recreational ecstasy users. This finding is consistent with reports of hippocampal vulnerability, particularly among heavy users.
Author List
Medina KL, Shear PK, Corcoran KAuthor
Krista Lisdahl PhD Assistant Professor in the Psychology department at University of Wisconsin - MilwaukeeMESH terms used to index this publication - Major topics in bold
AdolescentAdult
Analysis of Variance
Chi-Square Distribution
Cognition
Cognition Disorders
Demography
Dose-Response Relationship, Drug
Female
Hallucinogens
Humans
Interviews as Topic
Male
Marijuana Abuse
Memory
N-Methyl-3,4-methylenedioxyamphetamine
Neuropsychological Tests
Principal Component Analysis
Sex Factors
Substance-Related Disorders
Surveys and Questionnaires
Verbal Learning
