Milivojevic V, et al. – This study explored the sex variations in Guanfacine effects on stress–induced Stroop performance, in cocaine dependent individuals. Sex differences were found in Guanfacine effects on cognitive and inhibitory control. Enhancing the ability to cognitively regulate in the face of stress, drug cues and combined stress and drug cue reactivity could assist in the development of medications in cocaine dependent women.

Methods

• For this research, 40 inpatient treatment-seeking cocaine dependent people (13F/27 M) were randomly assigned to receive either placebo or up to 3mgs of Guanfacine.
• After that, 3 laboratory sessions were conducted following 3–4 weeks of abstinence, where patients were exposed to three 10-min personalized guided imagery conditions (stress, drug cue, combined stress/cue), one per day, on consecutive days in a random, counterbalanced order.
• Finally, the Stroop task was administered at baseline and immediately following imagery exposure.

Results

• The study results showed that Guanfacine treated women improved their performance on the Stroop task following exposure to all 3 imagery conditions compared with placebo women (p = 0.02).
• However, this improvement in cognitive inhibitory performance was not seen in the men.