Binge Drinking, Alone or With Cannabis, During Adolescence Triggers Different Effects on Immediate Visual Memory in Men and Women.

This study examines the interaction between a history of binge drinking (BD), alone or with cannabis consumption, and the effects of acute alcohol exposure on immediate visual memory (IVM) (faces memory task, scenes memory task and IVM-IQ) in adolescents of both sexes. Two hundred and ninety adolescents, grouped into refrainers, binge drinkers and subjects with a history of simultaneous BD/Cannabis co-use, received a risk dose of alcohol or a control drink. Consumption Pattern (refrainers . binge drinkers . BD/Cannabis consumers) was not significant, while Treatment (acute alcohol . control drink) was significant in both sexes. Also, male binge drinkers' performance in the faces memory task was poorer than that of refrainers and BD/Cannabis consumers who consumed the control drink. BD/Cannabis consumers performed this task as capably as refrainers. In women, binge drinkers performed better than refrainers in scene memory and IVM-IQ tests when given alcohol, and binge drinkers performed worse than refrainers after consuming the control drink. Acute alcohol consumption worsens IVM. Cannabis exerts a buffering effect in men. A cognitive tolerance effect is observed in women. Exposure during adolescence to alcohol, alone or with cannabis, can trigger different cognitive effects in men and women that could endure into adulthood.