Abstract
1. The after-effects of 0.1 gram pentobarbital sodium administered by mouth were investigated by means of psycho-physiological performance tests. Four tests, representing a range of functions, Tapping Speed, Auditory Reaction Time, Naming of Opposites, and Memory for Digits, showed a significant deterioration in performance at 6:00 a.m., four hours after the barbiturate had been taken.
2. The effect observed at 6:00 a.m. diminished after breakfast but was found to continue in a highly suggestive (qualitative trend) but not statistically significant degree until after 4:00 p.m., 14 hours after medication.
3. Although previous studies had been unable to demonstrate the effects of small doses upon test performance, the present findings were made possible by controlling many of the sources of variability, by means of the experimental design and analytic procedures.
Footnotes
- Received January 19, 1951.
JPET articles become freely available 12 months after publication, and remain freely available for 5 years.Non-open access articles that fall outside this five year window are available only to institutional subscribers and current ASPET members, or through the article purchase feature at the bottom of the page.
|
