Obstructive sleep apnoea and daytime driver sleepiness
Year: 2011
Type: dissertation
Abstract: Driver sleepiness is known to be a major contributor to road traffic incidents (RTIs). An\ninitial literature review identified many studies reporting untreated obstructive sleep\napnoea (OSA) sufferers as having impaired driving performance and increased RTI risk.\nIt is consistently reported that treatment with continuous positive air pressure (CPAP)\nimproves driving performance and decreases RTI risk, although most of these studies\nare conducted less than one year after starting treatment. UK law allows treated OSA\npatients to continue driving if their doctor states that treatment has been successful.\nDespite the wealth of publications surrounding OSA and driving, 6 key areas were\nidentified from the literature review as not fully investigated, the: (i) prevalence of\nundiagnosed OSA in heavy goods vehicle (HGV) drivers in the UK; (ii) impact of sleep\nrestriction on long term CPAP treated OSA compared with healthy controls; (iii) ability\nof treated OSA participants to identify sleepiness when driving; (iv) impact of one night\nCPAP withdrawal on driving performance; (v) individual difference in driving\nperformance of long term CPAP treated OSA participants; (vi) choice of\ncountermeasures to driver sleepiness by two groups susceptible to driver sleepiness,\nOSA and HGV drivers.\nKey areas (i) and (vi) were assessed using questionnaires. 148 HGV drivers were\nsurveyed to assess OSA symptoms and preference of countermeasures to driver\nsleepiness. All participants completing the driving simulator study were also surveyed.\n9.5% of HGV drivers were found to have symptoms of suspected undiagnosed OSA.\nAdditionally the OSA risk factors were more prevalent for HGV drivers than reported in\nnational statistics reports for the general population. The most effective\ncountermeasures to driver sleepiness (caffeine and a nap) were not the most popular.\nBeing part of a susceptible group (OSA or HGV driver) and prior experience of driver\nsleepiness did not promote effective choice of countermeasure.\nKey areas (ii) to (v) were assessed using a driving simulator. Driving simulators present\na safe environment to test participants in a scenario where they may experience\nsleepiness without endangering other road users. (Continues...).
Author: Ashleigh J. Filtness
Language: English
Subfield: Experimental and Cognitive Psychology
Field: Psychology
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W835435410