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Laboratory Measures of Aggression in Methadone Patients Pre- and Postdose

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Abstract

Purpose

Studies with humans have shown that acute opioid administration increases aggressive behavior, but no laboratory study has yet investigated whether opioid withdrawal produces comparable effects.

Methods

This study investigated whether mild opioid deprivation affected aggression in 6 males and 6 females (N = 12) undergoing methadone maintenance therapy. Aggressive behavior was measured using the point subtraction aggression paradigm (PSAP). Trait aggression was assessed using the Buss–Perry Aggression Questionnaire. Behavior on the PSAP and mood ratings on the Profile of Mood States questionnaire (POMS) were measured on two separate days; once before and once following the participant’s daily methadone dose, with order counterbalanced across participants.

Results

There were no effects of opioid withdrawal on aggressive responding, control response rates, monetary reinforced responding, or self-reports of mood. Rates of responding on the monetary-reinforced option increased across sessions regardless of condition, suggesting an exposure effect.

Conclusion

These data suggest that mild opioid deprivation occurring 24 hours following methadone administration in individuals undergoing methadone maintenance therapy does not increase aggression, at least in individuals showing low levels of aggressive behavior and low measures of trait aggression. Because participants reported no mood changes and there were no direct measures of withdrawal, it is possible that 24 hours of methadone deprivation produced no withdrawal in these participants. It remains to be determined whether more prolonged deprivation might generate more significant changes in mood and/or changes in aggressive behavior.

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Author notes

  1. Catherine Gayman

    Present address: Troy University, Montgomery, AL, USA

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, MI, USA

    Catherine Gayman & Cynthia Pietras

Authors
  1. Catherine Gayman
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  2. Cynthia Pietras
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Catherine Gayman.

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Funding

This study was funded by a student research award grant from Western Michigan University (no grant number applicable).

Conflict of Interest

Author A declares that she has no conflict of interest. Author B declares that she has no conflict of interest.

Ethical Approval

All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and/or national research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.

Informed Consent

Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study.

Appendix

Appendix

Table 2

Table 2 Individual participant data averaged across three daily sessions during deprivation day and satiation day for PSAP monetary-earning, aggression, and escape responses
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Gayman, C., Pietras, C. Laboratory Measures of Aggression in Methadone Patients Pre- and Postdose. Psychol Rec 67, 51–60 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40732-016-0206-z

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