The Effects of Inhalant Misuse on Attentional Networks

Abstract

Inhalant misuse among adolescents is poorly understood from a neuropsychological perspective. This study aimed to identify attentional deficits related to inhalant misuse measured with the Attention Network Test (ANT). We examined three groups: 19 inhalant users, 19 cannabis users, and 18 community controls. There were no group differences on the ANT measures of orienting, alerting, and executive control. However, compared to the cannabis and control groups, inhalant users demonstrated an increased rate of response errors in the absence of any reaction time differences. These differences may reflect a selective deficit in sustained attention or greater impulsivity in the inhalant group.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

We thank all the young people who agreed to participate in the study.

This work was supported by the National Health and Medical Research Council Clinical Career Development Award (grant 509345 to M. Y.); the José Castillejo Fellowship from the Spanish Ministry of Education and Science (JC2010-0193 to R. V.-L., JC2010-0195 to A. V.-G.); the RETICS Program, Red de Trastornos Adictivos, Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Spanish Ministry of Health (to A. V.-G. and R. V.-L.); the Ronald Phillip Griffith's Fellowship, Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry & Health Sciences, University of Melbourne (to S. M. C.); and the Orygen Youth Health Ph.D. Scholarship (to M. T.).