Laboratory Performance During Acute Alcohol Intoxication and Hangover

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Abstract
Eleven private pilots (seven men and four women) were recruited and trained on the Multiple Task Performance Battery (MTPB), static and dynamic tracking of a localizer/glide slope instrument, and use of the Intoxilyzer. The experiment comprised four test sessions (vodka, bourbon, placebo, and control sessions) held at weekly intervals. Sessions began at about 5:00 p.m. and continued through midnight to about 11:00 a.m. the next day. Subjects were tested in groups of three or four and were not told whether they were drinking alcohol or placebo. The ordering of sessions was approximately counterbalanced. Subjects were given all tests in the evening (before and after a monitored dinner), drank prepared beverages from 8:30 p.m. to midnight, and were tested again. Subjects slept 4 to 5 hr. They were awakened around 7:00 a.m., fed, and asked to perform all tasks again, beginning at 8:00 a.m. (8 hr after they had finished drinking). Results showed clear deleterious effects of alcohol on the MTPB and the tracking tasks immediately following drinking. During the morning (hangover) tests, scores on the MTPB and on the static and dynamic tracking tasks showed small circadian effects (scores were better) without impairment due to the alcohol. There were no congener effects. These results offer no evidence contrary to the "8 hour rule."