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Effects of 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine and methamphetamine on motor vehicle driving performance: A systematic review of experimental and observational studies.

Journal of forensic sciences
January 1, 2023
Ian R McGrane et al. (4 authors)
Systematic ReviewJournal ArticleReviewHuman Study
Study Details

Study Goal

The researchers aimed to evaluate the effects of METH and MDMA on motor vehicle driving performance (MVP) to provide insights for the forensic community.

Results Summary

Experimental studies often showed no significant MVP safety signals for MDMA, contrary to observational studies which identified substantial risks. Common driving behaviors under MDMA influence included errors in judgment, high speeds, lane weaving, and crashes.

Population

Not specified (general population of METH and MDMA users).

Effective Dosage

Not specified (doses in experimental studies may not reflect real-world concentrations).

Duration

Not specified.

Interactions

None mentioned.

Extracted Claims (4)
InterventionDirectionEndpointPopulationDosageImpactClaim #
METH
no change
motor vehicle driving performance (MVP) safety
experimental studies
no significant change
often demonstrated no significant MVP safety signals
#1
MDMA
no change
motor vehicle driving performance (MVP) safety
experimental studies
no significant change
often demonstrated no significant MVP safety signals
#2
METH
decrease
motor vehicle driving performance (MVP) safety
observational studies
-
overwhelming MVP safety risks found
#3
MDMA
decrease
motor vehicle driving performance (MVP) safety
observational studies
-
overwhelming MVP safety risks found
#4
Abstract

Methamphetamine (METH) and 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) are common drugs of abuse and driving under their influence may occur in 1 million people yearly in the United States. This systematic review fills the currently unmet need in understanding the effects of METH and MDMA on motor vehicle driving performance (MVP) and provides insight into the forensic community. A PubMed search on September 24, 2020, for experimental and observational studies, which evaluated the impact of METH and MDMA on MVP was performed. After a review of 208 abstracts, 103 were considered potentially interesting and full texts were obtained. After the exclusion of non-English articles, review articles, single case reports, and articles which did not evaluate METH or MDMA on MVP, a total of nine experimental studies, 10 traditional observational studies, and 35 case series were included. The clinical rigor of experimental studies was evaluated using the Jadad scale. Experimental studies often demonstrated no significant MVP safety signals for METH or MDMA use, which was contrary to the overwhelming MVP safety risks found in observational studies. Common driving behaviors while using METH or MDMA include: errors in judgment, traveling at high speeds, failure to stop, merging inappropriately, lane weaving, and crashes. Limitations of experimental studies that led to dissimilar MVP outcomes from observational studies include: the common use of driving simulators, as opposed to actual driving examinations, and doses of METH or MDMA administered may not be representative of blood concentrations seen in observational studies. This systematic review has no funding source and was not registered.

Medical Subject Headings (MeSH)
HumansN-Methyl-3,4-methylenedioxyamphetamineMethamphetamineMotor Vehicles
Study Links
Quality Scores
Safety30
Efficacy50/10
Quality70/10
Citation Metrics
Total Citations1
Citations/Year0.5
Relative Citation Ratio0.42
NIH Percentile22.7%
Research Impact Scores
APT Score0.25
Weight Score2.25
Normalized Score0.46
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