Driving under low-contrast visibility conditions in Parkinson disease.

ABSTRACT:

Objective

To assess driving performance in Parkinson disease (PD) under low-contrast visibility conditions.

Methods

Licensed, active drivers with mild to moderate PD (n = 67, aged 66.2 +/- 9.0 years, median Hoehn-Yahr stage = 2) and controls (n = 51, aged 64.0 +/- 7.2 years) drove in a driving simulator under high- (clear sky) and low-contrast visibility (fog) conditions, leading up to an intersection where an incurring vehicle posed a crash risk in fog.

Results

Drivers with PD had higher SD of lateral position (SDLP) and lane violation counts (LVC) than controls during fog (p < 0.001). Transition from high- to low-contrast visibility condition increased SDLP and LVC more in PD than in controls (p < 0.01). A larger proportion of drivers with PD crashed at the intersec

SUBMITTER: Uc EY 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2764395 | biostudies-literature | 2009 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature