Philipp Schulz1, Thomas Beblo2, Stefan Spannhorst3, Sebastian Boedeker4, Stefan H Kreisel5, Martin Driessen4, Kirsten Labudda6, Max Toepper4. 1. Evangelisches Klinikum Bethel (EvKB), Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Research Division, Remterweg 69-71, 33617, Bielefeld, Germany. Electronic address: philipp.schulz@evkb.de. 2. Evangelisches Klinikum Bethel (EvKB), Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Research Division, Remterweg 69-71, 33617, Bielefeld, Germany. 3. Zentrum für Seelische Gesundheit, Klinikum Stuttgart, Clinic for Psychiatry and Psychotherapy for Older People, Prießnitzweg 24, D-70374, Stuttgart, Germany. 4. Evangelisches Klinikum Bethel (EvKB), Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Research Division, Remterweg 69-71, 33617, Bielefeld, Germany; Evangelisches Klinikum Bethel (EvKB), Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Division of Geriatric Psychiatry, Bethesdaweg 12, 33617, Bielefeld, Germany; Evangelisches Klinikum Bethel (EvKB), Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Memory Clinic, Gadderbaumer Straße 33, D-33602, Bielefeld, Germany. 5. Evangelisches Klinikum Bethel (EvKB), Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Research Division, Remterweg 69-71, 33617, Bielefeld, Germany; Evangelisches Klinikum Bethel (EvKB), Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Division of Geriatric Psychiatry, Bethesdaweg 12, 33617, Bielefeld, Germany. 6. Department of Psychology, Bielefeld University, Universitätsstraße 25, D-33615, Bielefeld, Germany.
Abstract
OBJECTIVES: Due to demographic change, the number of older drivers with impaired driving skills will increase in the next decades. The current study aimed at the validation and extension of the screening tool Safety Advice For Elderly drivers (SAFE) that allows a cost-efficient assessment of driving-related risk factors in older drivers. METHOD: Seventy-four older drivers aged ≥65 years (M = 77 years) recruited from the general population were included in this prospective observational study. Receiver operating characteristic curve (ROC) and hierarchical logistic regression analyses were utilized to examine whether the SAFE and further evidence-based driving-related factors may allow the differentiation between fit and unfit older drivers assessed in standardized on-road driving assessments. RESULTS: ROC analyses revealed significant diagnostic accuracy of the number of SAFE risk factors in differentiating between fit and unfit older drivers (AUC = 0.71). A stepwise logistic regression model revealed that adding further evidence-based risk factors into the SAFE clearly improved diagnostic accuracy (AUC = 0.85). DISCUSSION: The current study shows that the risk assessed by the SAFE predicts on-road driving fitness in older adults. However, the results also suggest a need for a modification of the SAFE by the inclusion of additional evidence-based risk factors. With sensitivity and specificity scores of about 90 % and 75 %, this modified version may be more suitable for clinical use.
OBJECTIVES: Due to demographic change, the number of older drivers with impaired driving skills will increase in the next decades. The current study aimed at the validation and extension of the screening tool Safety Advice For Elderly drivers (SAFE) that allows a cost-efficient assessment of driving-related risk factors in older drivers. METHOD: Seventy-four older drivers aged ≥65 years (M = 77 years) recruited from the general population were included in this prospective observational study. Receiver operating characteristic curve (ROC) and hierarchical logistic regression analyses were utilized to examine whether the SAFE and further evidence-based driving-related factors may allow the differentiation between fit and unfit older drivers assessed in standardized on-road driving assessments. RESULTS: ROC analyses revealed significant diagnostic accuracy of the number of SAFE risk factors in differentiating between fit and unfit older drivers (AUC = 0.71). A stepwise logistic regression model revealed that adding further evidence-based risk factors into the SAFE clearly improved diagnostic accuracy (AUC = 0.85). DISCUSSION: The current study shows that the risk assessed by the SAFE predicts on-road driving fitness in older adults. However, the results also suggest a need for a modification of the SAFE by the inclusion of additional evidence-based risk factors. With sensitivity and specificity scores of about 90 % and 75 %, this modified version may be more suitable for clinical use.
Authors: Stefania Balzarotti; Eleonora Pagani; Ilaria Telazzi; Martina Gnerre; Federica Biassoni Journal: Int J Environ Res Public Health Date: 2022-10-06 Impact factor: 4.614