Effects of experimentally induced respiratory virus infections and illness on psychomotor performance.
In two studies experimentally induced colds slowed the speed of response in a serial reaction task. Responding was also slower during the incubation period of the illness, which shows that performance on such a task may be used to predict subsequent illness. Volunteers who had no significant clinical illness, but who had a significant rise in IgG following virus challenge, also showed changes in performance. In contrast to the serial reaction task, neither colds nor subclinical infections impaired performance on a detection task.
Smith
A P
AP
MRC Perceptual and Cognitive Performance Unit, University of Sussex, Brighton, UK.
Tyrrell
D A
DA
Al-Nakib
W
W
Coyle
K B
KB
Donovan
C B
CB
Higgins
P G
PG
Willman
J S
JS
D003139:Common Cold / Q000503:physiopathology*; D006801:Humans; D011597:Psychomotor Performance / Q000502:physiology*; D011930:Reaction Time / Q000502:physiology*