Psychopharmacological effects of oxycodone in healthy volunteers: Roles of alcohol-drinking status and sex

Abstract Background Studies have shown that alcohol-drinking status modulates psychopharmacological effects of several drugs. We sought to determine if drinking status modulates the effects of a prescription opioid, oxycodone, in healthy volunteers. We included sex of the volunteer in the statistical analyses since this is a factor that is known to alter several pharmacodynamic effects of opioids in nonhumans and humans. Methods Fifteen light drinkers (eight males) and 14 moderate drinkers (eight males) participated in a crossover, randomized, double-blind study in which they received 0, 10, and 20 mg of oxycodone (p.o.). Dependent measures were subjective, psychomotor/cognitive, reinforcing, and physiological effects. Results Self-reported alcohol-drinking status did not modulate the effects of oxycodone. However, there were a number of Sex × Dose interactions with females reporting more and larger unpleasant effects than males (e.g., visual analog scale ratings of “nauseated” greater in females than in males). Conclusions Studies have established that moderate drinkers report a greater degree of abuse liability-related effects than do light drinkers with several different drugs, including diazepam, amphetamine, and nitrous oxide, but we were unable to establish this with the prescription opioid, oxycodone. However, we did observe sex differences in several subjective effects of oxycodone, a finding that is consistent with the extant literature showing sex differences in pharmacodynamic effects of opioids.