Sepracor study: Lunesta did not impair next-day driving

Sepracor Inc., a Marlborough pharmaceutical company, said today that a study it conducted showed that a sample of people taking its Lunesta drug for insomnia did not exhibit delayed reactions when they drove a car the next day.

According to Sepracor, the primary objective of the study was to assess "next-day, actual on-the-road car driving ability and cognitive and pyschomotor performance" in patients with primary insomnia who were administered either Lunesta or a placebo.

Next-day driving ability was assessed by brake-reaction time, or BRT, in a dual-controlled car on a closed-circuit track the next morning, Sepracor said.

"In this study, there was no statistically significant difference in the primary endpoint of on-the-road BRT, following nighttime administration of Lunesta 3 mg, compared with placebo," Sepracor said.
(By Chris Reidy, Globe staff)