Psychiatry Investig.  2020 Aug;17(8):744-750. 10.30773/pi.2019.0219.

Driving-Related Adverse Events in the Elderly Men: A Population-Based Prospective Cohort Study

• Kim JS
• Bae JB
• Han K
• Hong JW
• Han JH
• Kim TH
• Kwak KP
• Kim K
• Kim BJ
• Kim SG
• Kim JL
• Kim TH
• Moon SW
• Park JY
• Park JH
• Byun S
• Suh SW
• Seo JY
• So Y
• Ryu SH
• Youn JC
• Lee KH
• Lee DY
• Lee DW
• Lee SB
• Lee JJ
• Lee JR
• Jeong H
• Jeong HG
• Jhoo JH
• Han JW
• Kim KW

• KMID: 2505271
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.30773/pi.2019.0219

Abstract

Objective
This study estimated the incidence of driving-related adverse events and examined the association of cognitive function with the risk of future driving-related adverse events in the elderly Korean male population.
Methods
We analyzed 1,172 male drivers aged 60 years or older in the Korean Longitudinal Study on Cognitive Aging and Dementia (KLOSCAD). Using the data from Korean National Police Agency, we classified the participants into three groups: safe driving (drove for 2 years after baseline without a traffic accident or repeated violations), driving cessation (stopped driving), and risky driving (one or more traffic accidents or repeated violations). We estimated the incidences of driving cessation and risky driving, and examined the effect of cognitive function on their risks.
Results
The incidence of driving cessation and risky driving in the Korean male drivers aged 60 years or older was 19.3 and 69.9 per 1,000 person-years respectively and increased in the late 80s. Drivers with better baseline Word List Memory Test scores showed less risky driving (OR=0.94, p=0.039).
Conclusion
Driving-related adverse events increased in late 80s, and better memory function was protective against these events.

Keyword

Driving, Incidence, Accident, Violation, Memory