Driving Simulator Performance After Administration of Analgesic Doses of Ketamine With Dexmedetomidine or Fentanyl

Purpose/Background As a sole agent, ketamine acutely compromises driving ability; however, performance after coadministration with the adjuvant sedating agents dexmedetomidine or fentanyl is unclear. Methods/Procedures Using a randomized within-subject design, 39 participants (mean ± SD age, 28.4 ± 5.8 years) received 0.3 mg/kg bolus followed by 0.15 mg kg−1 h−1 infusion of ketamine (3-hour duration), in addition to either (i) 0.7 μg kg−1 h−1 infusion of dexmedetomidine for 1.5 hours (n = 19; KET/DEX) or (ii) three 25 μg fentanyl injections for 1.5 hours (n = 20; KET/FENT). Whole blood drug concentrations were determined during ketamine only, at coadministration (KET/DEX or KET/FENT) and at 2 hours after treatment. Subjective effects were determined using a standardized visual analog scale. Driving performance was assessed at baseline and at posttreatment using a validated computerized driving simulator. Primary outcomes included SD of lateral position (SDLP) and steering variability (SV). Findings/Results Administration of ketamine with dexmedetomidine but not fentanyl significantly increased SDLP (F1,18 = 22.60, P
Source: Journal of Clinical Psychopharmacology - Category: Psychiatry Tags: Original Contributions Source Type: research