VIEWS OF BRITISH NEUROLOGISTS ON EPILEPSY, DRIVING, AND THE LAW
1983; Elsevier BV; Volume: 321; Issue: 8321 Linguagem: Inglês
10.1016/s0140-6736(83)91512-x
ISSN1474-547X
Autores Tópico(s)Epilepsy research and treatment
ResumoThe accident rate amongst drivers with epilepsy is 1.3 to 2.0 times that amongst aged matched controls without epilepsy. There are therefore good reasons for preventing some people with epilepsy from driving. Though restrictions exist in many countries there is good evidence that many drivers currently ineligible with epilepsy are driving. Areas of confusion have been caused by a number of grey areas into which some patients fall, by inconsistent advice given by some neurologists and their inability to predict the UK Drivers & Vehicle Licensing Centre's (DVLC) ruling. The authors attempt to identify these areas of confusion by investigating current practice and understanding amongst neurologists. This was done by sending 23 short case histories to 233 members of the Association of British Neurologists and asking them when the subject of each case would become eligible to hold a driving licence under the current regulations. They were also asked when they would prefer each of the hypothetical patients to be allowed to drive if this interval were different to what they thought the regulations required. A response rate of 56 per cent was obtained and the results showed a considerable variation in the neurologists understanding of the regulations. Wide discrepancies were discovered between their interpretation of, and apparent intent of, the regulations. The areas of confusion are discussed and it is felt that there is a need for further studies of the risk of recurrency of seizures under various circumstances, so that the guidance given by the DVLC and its advisory panel may be more firmly based on fact. (Author/TRRL)
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