Assessment of Fitness to Drive and Cardiovascular Diseases at the Spanish Medical Traffic Centres

This article reports on a study that investigated the issue of fitness to drive among drivers with cardiovascular disorders, and the relevance of other associated medical conditions among drivers assessed as unfit. The authors note that there is an increased risk of automobile accidents in patients with some cardiovascular disorders and licensing authorities in Spain have imposed certain restrictions on such persons. The study included 5,234 drivers attending two Spanish Medical Driver Test Centers for an assessment of their fitness to drive. Data was collected on sociodemographics, driving patterns, medical conditions, medication use and alcohol consumption patterns. In this cohort, 11.6% of the drivers had a cardiovascular disorder that potentially impaired fitness to drive, 82.5% were found fit to drive, 15.9% were fit to drive with restrictions and 1.6% were found to be unfit to drive. The ten patients with cardiovascular disorders who were determined to be unfit to drive were primarily considered unfit because of their associated ophthalmologic and medical comorbidities, but the cardiovascular disorders were a contributing factor. The authors conclude that their data shows that most (98.4%) drivers with cardiovascular disorders are completely fit to drive or fit to drive with restrictions. They discuss some of the complexities of determining an individual patient's fitness to drive and encourage the use of a system that incorporates individual assessment into any final decision.

• Availability:
  • Find a library where document is available. Order URL: http://worldcat.org/issn/13469843
• Authors:
  • Alvarez, F Javier
  • Fierro, Inmaculada
  • Vicondoa, Africa
  • Ozcoidi, Marta
  • Gomez-Talegon, Trinidad
• Publication Date: 2007-11

Language

• English

Media Info

• Media Type: Print
• Features: References; Tables;
• Pagination: pp 1800-1804
• Serial:
  • Circulation Journal
  • Volume: 71
  • Issue Number: 11
  • Publisher: Japanese Circulation Society
  • ISSN: 1346-9843

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Alcohol use; Automobile drivers; Cardiovascular diseases; Demographics; Diseases and medical conditions; Driving tests; Drugs; Fitness to drive; Highway safety; Risk assessment; Vision tests
• Geographic Terms: Spain
• Subject Areas: Highways; Safety and Human Factors; Society; I83: Accidents and the Human Factor; I84: Personal Injuries;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01108928
• Record Type: Publication
• Files: TRIS
• Created Date: Aug 22 2008 8:42AM