Behavioral evaluation of drugs: A comparison of the behavioral effects of adinazolam and lorazepam

This investigation illustrates the role of behavioral measures in the assessment of drug safety and shows how such measures can provide an objective index of some of the functional domains that impact on 'quality of life'. Subjects were 24 healthy male volunteers reporting a history of recreational use of sedative/hypnotic drugs. They participated in a study to compare the acute effects of adinazolam, a new triazolobenzodiazepine, with those of the benzodiazepine anxiolytic lorazepam. Drug treatments were lorazepam (0, 1.5 mg, 3.0 mg, 5.0 mg) or adinazolam (0, 5 mg, 15 mg, 50 mg). Subjects were randomized to receive either adinazolam or lorazepam. Drug administration was double blind, and order of dose administration was counter-balanced. Behavioral effects of the compounds were evaluated by subjective reports of drug effect and by measures of psychomotor/cognitive performance. Adinazolam and lorazepam had similar dose-related and time-related profiles of effects, with an indication of faster onset of effects for adinazolam and slower offset of effects of lorazepam on some measures. Impairment of reaction time scores was evident for lorazepam, but not for adinazolam. Developing behavioral surrogate measures of disease processes can be useful in describing and understanding the effects of pharmacotherapy on quality of life.