Ilmari Pyykkö1, Vinaya Manchaiah2, Jing Zou3, Hilla Levo4, Erna Kentala4. 1. Department of Otolaryngology, Hearing and Balance Research Unit, University of Tampere, Tampere, Finland. 2. Department of Speech and Hearing Sciences, Lamar University, Beaumont, Texas, USA;Department of Speech and Hearing, School of Allied Health Sciences, Manipal University, Manipal, Karnataka, India. 3. Department of Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Center for Otolaryngology-Head - Neck Surgery of Chinese PLA, Changhai Hospital, Second Military Medical University, Shanghai, China. 4. Department of Otolaryngology, University of Helsinki School of Medicine, Helsinki, Finland.
Abstract
OBJECTIVES: The study evaluated the driving habits and risk of traffic accidents among people with Ménière's disease (MD) in Finland. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The study used a cross-sectional survey design. Members of the Finnish Ménière Federation (FMF) were contacted and requested to participate in an online survey. In total, 558 FMF members (58.7% response rate) responded to the survey. RESULTS: People with MD were responsible for significantly fewer traffic accidents (0.8%) annually than individuals in the general population (1.7%). In addition, the lifetime risk of car accidents was lower among subjects with MD (8.3%) than that among individuals in the general population (24 to 28%). Nearly half of the total participants had either reduced the frequency of driving or had given up driving because of their condition. Factors such as gender, balance problems, visual problems with visual aura, and syncope during vestibular drop attacks can help explain the reasons for giving up car driving. One third (35.9%) of the participants were able to anticipate the MD attack before they decided to drive a car. Participants with falls during a vestibular drop attack, attacks of rotary vertigo, syncope during vestibular drop attacks, and those who were of a younger age were at a higher risk of experiencing a vertigo attack while driving a car. The most common strategies to avoid car accidents were selective driving and not driving when symptoms appeared. CONCLUSION: The results show that people with MD are at a lower risk of traffic accidents than individuals in the general population, which can be explained by selective driving.
OBJECTIVES: The study evaluated the driving habits and risk of traffic accidents among people with Ménière's disease (MD) in Finland. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The study used a cross-sectional survey design. Members of the Finnish Ménière Federation (FMF) were contacted and requested to participate in an online survey. In total, 558 FMF members (58.7% response rate) responded to the survey. RESULTS:People with MD were responsible for significantly fewer traffic accidents (0.8%) annually than individuals in the general population (1.7%). In addition, the lifetime risk of car accidents was lower among subjects with MD (8.3%) than that among individuals in the general population (24 to 28%). Nearly half of the total participants had either reduced the frequency of driving or had given up driving because of their condition. Factors such as gender, balance problems, visual problems with visual aura, and syncope during vestibular drop attacks can help explain the reasons for giving up car driving. One third (35.9%) of the participants were able to anticipate the MD attack before they decided to drive a car. Participants with falls during a vestibular drop attack, attacks of rotary vertigo, syncope during vestibular drop attacks, and those who were of a younger age were at a higher risk of experiencing a vertigo attack while driving a car. The most common strategies to avoid car accidents were selective driving and not driving when symptoms appeared. CONCLUSION: The results show that people with MD are at a lower risk of traffic accidents than individuals in the general population, which can be explained by selective driving.
Authors: Herng-Ching Lin; Sudha Xirasagar; Chia-Hui Wang; Yen-Fu Cheng; Tsai-Ching Liu; Tzong-Hann Yang Journal: Int J Environ Res Public Health Date: 2021-06-18 Impact factor: 3.390