FEASIBILITY OF ESTABLISHING PRESUMPTIVE LIMITS FOR DRUGS

Analytical resoruces are not adequate to meet the needs of a law requiring accurate and reliable quantitative and qualitative analyses of drugs in body fluids. No valid epidemiological studies for drugs other than alcohol have been reported which show that any drug has contributed disproportionately to accidents. Studies carried out in California showed that many drug users in nonfatal and fatal accidents were secobarbital abusers (in Santa Clara County). Drugs were usually combined with alcohol use at sufficient alcohol levels to explain most if not all of the impairments observed. Studies relating drug levels to behavior are scarce and inadequate. No laboratory studies relating drug levels to driving behavior were found. Those involving dosage related to simulated or real driving tasks generally found that drugs caused some impairment. Current reseach on barbiturates may yield the earliest data from which limits for these drugs may be drawn. /Author/

• Corporate Authors:

  California Highway Patrol

  P.O. Box 942898
  Sacramento, CA  United States  94298-0001
• Authors:
  • Pudinski, W
• Publication Date: 1974-1

Media Info

• Features: References; Tables;
• Pagination: 128 p.

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Alcohols; Behavior; Crash causes; Drivers; Drugs; Epidemiology
• Subject Areas: Highways; Law; Safety and Human Factors;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00132150
• Record Type: Publication
• Source Agency: National Safety Council Safety Research Info Serv
• Files: TRIS
• Created Date: Nov 23 1977 12:00AM