Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Evaluation Of Field Sobriety Tests For Identifying Drivers Under The Influence Of Cannabis: A Randomized Clinical Trial, Thomas D Marcotte, Anya Umlauf, David J Grelotti, Emily G Sones, Kyle F Mastropietro, Raymond T Suhandynata, Marilyn A. Huestis, Igor Grant, Robert L Fitzgerald

Institute of Emerging Health Professions Faculty Papers

IMPORTANCE: With increasing medicinal and recreational cannabis legalization, there is a public health need for effective and unbiased evaluations for determining whether a driver is impaired due to Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) exposure. Field sobriety tests (FSTs) are a key component of the gold standard law enforcement officer-based evaluations, yet controlled studies are inconclusive regarding their efficacy in detecting whether a person is under the influence of THC.

OBJECTIVE: To examine the classification accuracy of FSTs with respect to cannabis exposure and driving impairment (as determined via a driving simulation).

DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: This double-blind, placebo-controlled parallel randomized clinical trial was …

Driving Under The Influence Of Cannabis: Impact Of Combining Toxicology Testing With Field Sobriety Tests, Robert L. Fitzgerald, Anya Umlauf, Jacqueline A. Hubbard, Melissa A. Hoffman, Philip M. Sobolesky, Shannon E. Ellis, David J. Grelotti, Raymond T. Suhandynata, Marilyn A. Huestis, Igor Grant, Thomas D. Marcotte

Institute of Emerging Health Professions Faculty Papers

BACKGROUND: Cannabis is increasingly used both medically and recreationally. With widespread use, there is growing concern about how to identify cannabis-impaired drivers.

METHODS: A placebo-controlled randomized double-blinded protocol was conducted to study the effects of cannabis on driving performance. One hundred ninety-one participants were randomized to smoke ad libitum a cannabis cigarette containing placebo or delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) (5.9% or 13.4%). Blood, oral fluid (OF), and breath samples were collected along with longitudinal driving performance on a simulator (standard deviation of lateral position [SDLP] and car following [coherence]) over a 5-hour period. Law enforcement officers performed field sobriety tests (FSTs) to …

New Psychoactive Substances Intoxications And Fatalities During The Covid-19 Epidemic, Alfredo Fabrizio Lo Faro, Diletta Berardinelli, Tommaso Cassano, Gregory Dendramis, Eva Montanari, Marche Polytechnic University, Paolo Beretta, Simona Zaami, Francesco Paolo Busardò, Marilyn Ann Huestis

Institute of Emerging Health Professions Faculty Papers

In January 2020, the World Health Organization (WHO) issued a Public Health Emergency of International Concern, declaring the COVID-19 outbreak a pandemic in March 2020. Stringent measures decreased consumption of some drugs, moving the illicit market to alternative substances, such as New Psychoactive Substances (NPS). A systematic literature search was performed, using scientific databases such as PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science and institutional and government websites, to identify reported intoxications and fatalities from NPS during the COVID-19 pandemic. The search terms were: COVID-19, SARS-CoV-2, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2, coronavirus disease 2019, intox*, fatal*, new psychoactive substance, novel psychoactive …