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Vision and health as factors contributing to injury collisions in Great Britain : comparisons between older and younger drivers
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Hawley, Carol, Roberts, Claire, Fosdick, Tanya and Ursachi, George (2020) Vision and health as factors contributing to injury collisions in Great Britain : comparisons between older and younger drivers. Optometry in Practice, 21 (1). ISSN 1467-9051.
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Abstract
Visual impairment, illness and disability are known to affect fitness to drive. The prevalence of both visual and health problems increases with age. In Great Britain, police forces record the circumstances of all collisions on public roads where someone is injured, using the STATS19 system. Since 2005, police have been recording factors contributing to road accidents. We examined STATS19 data for the period 2006–2013. During this time 1,528,875 drivers were involved in injury collisions where at least one contributory factor (CF) was
recorded. CF data relating to vision and heath were analysed comparing older and younger drivers. Results show that drivers aged ≥60 were
significantly more likely than younger drivers to be assigned the CFs: ‘failed to look properly’; ‘uncorrected, defective eyesight’; ‘illness or disability’; ‘dazzling headlights’; ‘dazzling sun’; and ‘failed to judge other person’s path or speed’. There was a relationship between ‘failed to look’ and ‘uncorrected, defective eyesight’. Compared to all drivers receiving these CFs, older drivers received significantly more CFs during the daytime, possibly due to their avoidance of night driving. Dazzling sun and headlights were a significant issue for older drivers, possibly due to increased sensitivity to glare. Optometrists have an important role to play in assessing visual fitness to drive. Road safety campaigns should target older drivers to promote the importance of frequent eye examinations and the wearing of corrective lenses.
Item Type: | Journal Article | ||||||
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Subjects: | R Medicine > R Medicine (General) | ||||||
Divisions: | Faculty of Science, Engineering and Medicine > Medicine > Warwick Medical School | ||||||
Journal or Publication Title: | Optometry in Practice | ||||||
Publisher: | College of Optometrists | ||||||
ISSN: | 1467-9051 | ||||||
Official Date: | 28 February 2020 | ||||||
Dates: |
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Volume: | 21 | ||||||
Number: | 1 | ||||||
Number of Pages: | 11 | ||||||
Status: | Peer Reviewed | ||||||
Publication Status: | Published | ||||||
Access rights to Published version: | Restricted or Subscription Access | ||||||
Copyright Holders: | © 2020 The College of Optometrists | ||||||
RIOXX Funder/Project Grant: |
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