Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Randomized Controlled Trial
. 2016 Sep;233(18):3461-9.
doi: 10.1007/s00213-016-4386-7. Epub 2016 Aug 4.

On-the-road driving performance after use of the antihistamines mequitazine and l-mequitazine, alone and with alcohol

N N J J M van der Sluiszen  1 , A Vermeeren  2 , S Jongen  2 , E L Theunissen  2 , A C M van Oers  2 , C J Van Leeuwen  2 , A Maret  3 , C Desforges  3 , A Delarue  3 , J G Ramaekers  2
Affiliations
Randomized Controlled Trial

On-the-road driving performance after use of the antihistamines mequitazine and l-mequitazine, alone and with alcohol

N N J J M van der Sluiszen et al. Psychopharmacology (Berl). 2016 Sep.

Abstract

Objective: Previous studies demonstrated that mequitazine produces mild sedation after single doses. Its enantiomer, l-mequitazine, has a stronger potency for the H1 receptor. The aim of the current study was to assess the effects of l-mequitazine and mequitazine, alone and with alcohol, on driving.

Methods: Twenty-five healthy volunteers were treated with l-mequitazine 2.5, 5.0 and 10 mg, mequitazine 10 mg and placebo, alone and in combination with alcohol in a double-blind crossover design. Driving performance was assessed using the standardized highway driving test in normal traffic. Its primary measure is the Standard Deviation of the Lateral Position (SDLP). Secondary measures consisted of an auditory word learning test during driving, and subjective measures of driving performance.

Results: L-mequitazine 2.5 and 5.0 mg showed no effect on SDLP in the highway driving test, while SDLP significantly increased after l-mequitazine 10 mg (alone +1.59 cm; with alcohol +1.41 cm) and mequitazine 10 mg (with alcohol +1.17 cm). Alcohol significantly impaired all performance measures (SDLP +2.63 cm) but did not interact with the effects of treatment. Subjective measures indicated that participants were aware of the impairing effects of alcohol, but not of l-mequitazine and mequitazine.

Conclusion: L-mequitazine can be considered safe to drive in dosages of 2.5 and 5.0 mg. L-mequitazine 10 mg led to mild driving impairment. Alcohol impaired all performance measures and added to the effects of l-mequitazine and mequitazine.

Keywords: Alcohol; Antihistamine; Highway driving test; L-mequitazine; Mequitazine.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Overview testing day. Time (in hours) is displayed for post-treatment (upper row) and post- alcohol (lower row) administration. Sub.Ev. subjective evaluations, AWLT auditory word learning task
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Mean (±SE) standard deviation of lateral position (SDLP) for each treatment, alone and with alcohol. Asterisks above bars indicate: significant differences from placebo, *p < 0.05; significant differences from placebo with alcohol, ⟡ p < 0.05
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

References

    1. Barbanoj M, García-Gea C, Antonijoan R, Izquierdo I, Donado E, Pérez I, et al. Evaluation of the cognitive, psychomotor and pharmacokinetic profiles of rupatadine, hydroxyzine and cetirizine, in combination with alcohol, in healthy volunteers. Hum Psychopharmacol Clin Exp. 2006;21(1):13–26. doi: 10.1002/hup.741. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Bond A, Lader M. The use of analogue scales in rating subjective feelings. Br J Med Psychol. 1974;47(3):211–218. doi: 10.1111/j.2044-8341.1974.tb02285.x. - DOI
    1. Borkenstein RF, Crowther R, Shumate R. The role of the drinking driver in traffic accidents (The Grand Rapids Study) Blutalkohol. 1974;11(Suppl):1–131.
    1. Clerc T, Tisne-Versailles J, Przybylski C. Use of 10-[(3R)-1-azabicyclo [2.2.2] oct-3-ylmethyl]-10H-phenothiazine for the preparation of a drug having a selective inhibition of muscarinic M1, M2, and M3 receptors. Patent and Trademark Office, US Patent No. 2012;8:143–245.
    1. Devillier P, Garrigue E, D’Auzers G, Monjotin N, Similowski T, Clerc T. V0162, a new long-acting bronchodilator for treatment of chronic obstructive lung diseases: preclinical and clinical results. Respir Res. 2015;16(1):1–12. doi: 10.1186/s12931-015-0227-1. - DOI - PMC - PubMed

Publication types

LinkOut - more resources