AbstractBackground: Reaction time is the speed with which an individual can respond to
a stimulus. Reaction time is very important aspect in occupation like driving, in which quicker level of response is one of the measure by which number of road traffic accidents can be reduced. Reaction time may be visual reaction time or auditory reaction time.
Objective: To compare mean visual reaction time for red color in school bus drivers with normal population.
Study Design: Cross-Sectional.
Materials and Methods: The present was conducted on 100 healthy school bus drivers (study group) and 100 healthy normal people (control group) of age group 20-50 years as per inclusion criteria. After taking informed consent a self- made questionnaire was administered and a thorough clinical examination – general and systemic - was done along with routine visual function tests (visual acuity and color vision) of all the participants of both the groups. Participants from both the groups with normal visual function tests were assessed for visual reaction time test for red color with the help of audio-visual reaction time apparatus. Each participant was subjected to three test stimuli and reaction time was noted each time & the best result (out of the three) was taken for analysis.
Results: Data thus obtained were compiled, tabulated and analyzed statistically by student t-test.
Conclusion: The visual reaction time for red color was shorter in drivers as compared to controls which is statistically significant (p<0.05).
Keywords: Visual Acuity; Audio-Visual Reaction Time Apparatus; Visual Reaction Time; Student-t Test.