Summary
The reaction-times (r.t.'s) of 18 male and 9 female out-patients under treatment with methadone for heroin addiction, were compared with those of control subjects who were either non-drug users or had recently been withdrawn from narcotic drugs. Three different r.t. tests were used: a simple visual, simple choice and a multiple discrimination, multiple choice r.t.
The median r.t.'s of subjects tolerant to average doses of 100 mg of methadone per day were either equal to or shorter than those of control subjects. Analysis of the data revealed that the source of r.t. differences may be ascribable to superior signal detection or possibly decision time (pre-motor components) rather than limb transport time components of the total reaction-time.
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This study was conducted at Rockefeller and Yeshiva University, and with the cooperation of the Beth Israel Medical Center. The research was supported in part by grant HRC H 1501; Health Research Council, Dept. of Health City of New York, and in part by the U. S. Public Health Service, under grant 1 R01 MH 15638-01. An earlier version of this paper was presented at the Eastern Psychological Association meetings, Washington, D.C., April 1968.
The writer appreciates the assistance of V. P. Dole for making the study possible, and the assistance of A. Warner, B. Kent, and H. Wexler in assisting in technical aspects of the research.
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Gordon, N.B. Reaction-times of methadone treated ex heroin addicts. Psychopharmacologia 16, 337–344 (1970). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00404740
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00404740