Table 2.

Physiological measures for healthy participants treated with either standard placebo or 0.5 mg pramipexole.

	Means ± SD
Variable	Placebo		Pramipexole
HR (beats per minute)
Pre-Drug	76.158 ± 9.400		73.250 ± 12.298
Pre-Task	66.684 ± 9.434		68.750 ± 10.652
Post-Task	64.368 ± 8.902		67.850 ± 10.733
Systolic BP (mmHg)
Pre-Drug	106.737 ± 8.723		112.650 ± 12.816
Pre-Task	102.421 ± 8.402		108.100 ± 12.473
Post-Task	101.947 ± 8.488		105.200 ± 25.816
Diastolic BP (mmHg)
Pre-Drug	71.579 ± 9.459		72.850 ± 7.604
Pre-Task	65.368 ± 15.126		67.950 ± 7.075
Post-Task	67.789 ± 5.170		69.500 ± 7.931
VAS alertness score
Pre-Drug	62.678 ± 12.219		64.422 ± 14.429
Pre-Task	58.639 ± 17.700		48.550 ± 15.475
Post-Task	56.761 ± 19.312		45.311 ± 14.931
Variable	F stat	P-value	Comparisons
HR (beats per minute)
Medication effect	F(1,37) = 0.08	p = 0.774
Time effect	F(2,74) = 32.40	p < 0.001	Pre-Drug > Pre-Task ***, Pre-Drug > Post-Task ***
Medication × Time Interaction	F(2,74) = 4.37	p = 0.016	Placebo: Pre-Drug > Pre-Task ***, Pre-Drug > Post-Task ***
			Pramipexole: Pre-Drug > Pre-Task *, Pre-Drug > Post-Task **
Systolic BP (mmHg)
Medication effect	F(1,37) = 1.812	p = 0.185
Time effect	F(2,74) = 3.54	p = 0.034	Pre-Drug > Pre-Task **
Medication × Time interaction	F(2,74) = 0.192	p = 0.825
Diastolic BP (mmHg)
Medication effect	F(1,37) = 0.739	p = 0.395
Time effect	F(2,74) = 5.167	p = 0.008	Pre-Drug > Pre-Task *, Pre-Drug > Post-Task *
Medication × Time interaction	F(2,74) = 0.073	p = 0.930
VAS alertness score
Medication effect	F(1,37) = 2.628	p = 0.113
Time effect	F(2,74) = 13.650	p < 0.001	Pre-Drug > Pre-Task ***, Pre-Drug > Post-Task ***
Medication × Time interaction	F(2,76) = 4.111	p = 0.020	Pramipexole: Pre-Drug > Pre-Task ***, Pre-Drug > Post-Task ***

Effect of treatment with either standard placebo or 0.5 mg pramipexole on HR (beats per minute), systolic blood pressure (BP; mmHg), diastolic BP (mmHg) and visual analog scale (VAS) drowsiness score (N = 20). Data represent group means ± SD. All factors were analyzed with repeated-measures two-way ANOVAs. Measurements were taken Pre-Drug, Pre-Task (2 h after treatment) and Post-Task (3 h after treatment). A significant main effect of time was found for heart rate (HR; ***p < 0.001), with Bonferroni multiple comparisons analysis showing decreased HR from Pre-Drug to Pre-Task (***) and from Pre-Drug to Post-Task (***). The main effect of time was qualified by the time-medication interaction effect, with both placebo and pramipexole groups showing significantly decreased HR from Pre-Drug to Pre-Task and Pre-Drug to Post-Task (all p < 0.05). No significant main effect of medication was found. A significant main effect of time was found for systolic BP (*p < 0.05), with Bonferroni multiple comparisons analysis showing decreased systolic HR from Pre-Drug to Pre-Task (**p < 0.01). No significant main effects of medication or time-medication interaction effects were found. A significant main effect of time was found for diastolic BP (**), with Bonferroni multiple comparisons analysis showing decreased diastolic BP from Pre-Drug to Pre-Task (*) and from Pre-Drug to Post-Task (*). No significant main medication effects or time-medication interaction effects were found. A significant main effect of time was found for VAS Alertness Score (***), with further Bonferroni multiple comparisons analysis showing decreased VAS Alertness Score from Pre-Drug to Pre-Task (***) and from Pre-Drug to Post-Task (***). The main effect of time was qualified by the time-medication interaction effect, with the pramipexole group showing significantly decreased VAS Alertness Score from Pre-Drug to Pre-Task (***) and from Pre-Drug to Post-Task (***). No significant main effect of medication was found.