No difference in responsiveness to a low dose of alcohol between healthy women and men.

The purpose of the current study was to examine gender-related differences in alcohol responsiveness by comparing the effect of a low-dose intravenous alcohol infusion upon saccadic eye movements, self-rated sedation and intoxication scores. The functional sensitivity to a low dose of alcohol in 12 healthy women and 12 healthy men was evaluated by comparing the effects of an intravenous alcohol infusion on a number of saccadic eye movement measures, including saccadic eye velocity (SEV), saccade latency, saccade accuracy, saccade deceleration and self-rated levels of intoxication and sedation. The infusion of a low dose of alcohol induced a decrease in SEV and increased saccade deceleration and self-rated scores of intoxication in both males and females. Saccade accuracy was also significantly deteriorated by alcohol in both groups. The alcohol infusion did not induce any main gender-related differences in the saccade or visual analogue scale measurements. According to the findings of the present study, no gender differences in the responsiveness to a low-dose alcohol infusion were found.