Effects of lorazepam on memory, attention and sedation in man.

The effects of three doses of lorazepam (0.5, 1.0 and 2.0 mg PO) on various aspects of memory, attention and sedation are described. Lorazepam produced dose-related deficits in verbal secondary memory, choice reaction time and a novel vigilance task. It also produced a dose-dependent increase in subjective sedation, and an enhancement of visual contrast sensitivity. These results are compared with those reported earlier using the muscarinic antagonist scopolamine, and discussed in relation to models of Alzheimer's disease.