Table 4. Gender differences in physiological and subjective effects after MDMA administration (mean ± SD; women n = 12 vs. men n = 15) (only significant effects included).
| Outcomes | AUC 0–4 h (Units) | AUC 0–6 h (Units) | AUC 0–24 h (Units) | Emax (Units) | ||||
| Women | Men | Women | Men | Women | Men | Women | Men | |
| Physiological measures | ||||||||
| Heart rate | 52.5±16.0** | 33.1±28.5 | 69.3±21.8* | 41.7±42.7 | 118.5±81.0 | 62.2±145.6 | 26.2±8.3** | 15.1±13.2 |
| Oral temperature | 1.2±0.8* | 0.5±0.8 | 2.3±1.4* | 1.1±1.1 | 6.4±5.7 | 3.7±3.5 | 0.6±0.4 | 0.4±0.5 |
| Subjective effects | ||||||||
| VAS – Dizziness | 20.4±17.0** | 4.9±8.3 | 21.6±17.6** | 5.2±8.9 | 22.7±18.4* | 6.49±12.1 | 17.7±13.5* | 6.1±9.6 |
| VAS – Depression/Sadness | 0.7±0.9 | 0.1±0.4 | 1.2±1.6* | 0.1±0.4 | 2.2±4.9 | 0.18±0.4 | 0.9±1.3* | 0.1±0.3 |
| ARCI – PCAG (Sedation) | 6.5±9.0 | 0.4±8.5 | 9.2±12.0 | 1.1±10.1 | 30.5±37.2* | 1.8±10.5 | 4.5±3.7* | 0.4±4.2 |
| VESSPA – Sedation | 17.0±12.2* | 8.3±8.7 | 22.2±15.0* | 10.1±10.3 | 54.4±55.3** | 10.7±11.2 | 9.1±4.5** | 3.9±3.6 |
| VESSPA - Psychotic symptoms | 6.6±4.0 | 4.1±5.6 | 7.8±4.5 | 4.4±6.0 | 9.2±6.7* | 4.4±6.0 | 3.6±2.4 | 2.0±2.6 |
AUC: area under the effect-time curve; Emax: peak effect; Tmax: time of peak effect. VAS: visual analogue scale. ARCI: Addiction Research Center Inventory, PCAG: pentobarbital-chlorpromazine-alcohol group. VESSPA: Evaluation of the Subjective Effects of Substances with Abuse Potential.
*
p<0.05,
**
p<0.01.