An Objective Measure of Recovery

All patients in this study received either intravenous sedation consisting of pentobarbital sodium or hydroxyzine and meperidine hydrochloride, with scopolamine hydrobromide or atropine sulfate and/or general anesthesia (methohexital) in addition to a local anesthetic. Pearson Correlation Coefficients with 50 variables in Matrix form; variances and standard deviations as well as multidimensional analysis of variance and quadratic and linear trends were computed and analyzed, and are reported elsewhere.8 Each drawing was scored for error by using a transparent, ruled, plastic grid over each drawing to measure the deviations. (Subsequent studies of drug effects, utilizing this modified Bender test have repeatedly demonstrated its validity and reliability.) Visual-motor incoordination appears most frequently in the production of sweeping, uninhibited lines, the substitution of dashes for lines, exaggeration or minimization of curves, and fragmentation.7 These aberrations, together with the psychological trauma resulting from the surgery and drug infusion, become evident in the patient’s performance.