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The relationship between drug use and traffic accident severity

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Drugs, Driving and Traffic Safety

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Abstract

The use of alcohol and certain illicit and psychoactive medicinal drugs has been associated with impaired driving and increased accident risk. Data with respect to the relationship between drug use and the severity of the accident, independent of the increased accident risk, are limited. The objective of this chapter is to evaluate and discuss the available epidemiological studies on the relationship between drug use by drivers and the severity of the accident. Data sources used for the literature search were EMBASE, PubMed and Forensic Science Abstracts 3/0 (FORS®). All databases were searched for references included in the database on January 1, 2008. Search strategy included the different groups of psychoactive substances of interest and traffic accidents in combination with accident severity or injury severity. The number of included publications was 20; they were published between 1983 and 2005. The study population varied from all crash-involved drivers (injured and not injured) to patients admitted to a trauma center (including crash-involved drivers) to fatally crash-involved drivers. The most frequently applied design is the cross-sectional study. In general, exposure assessment was performed by using toxicological results but, in a few studies, prescription data, police officers’ observations or questionnaires were used. The effects reported are controversial, i.e. the influence of psychoactive drugs other than alcohol on injury and/or accident severity is not clear. Some discrepancies may be explained by differences in methodological factors, e.g. study population, injury or accident severity measures, and exposure measures.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Toxicology, Netherlands Forensic Institute, P.O. Box 24044, 2490 AA, The Hague, The Netherlands

    Beitske E. Smink

  2. Department of Clinical Pharmacy, University Medical Centre Utrecht, P.O. Box 85500, 3508 GA, Utrecht, The Netherlands

    Toine C. G. Egberts

  3. Division of Pharmacoepidemiology and Pharmacotherapy, Utrecht Institute for Pharmaceutical Sciences, Faculty of Science, Utrecht University, P.O. Box 80082, 3508 TB, Utrecht, The Netherlands

    Toine C. G. Egberts

Authors
  1. Beitske E. Smink
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  2. Toine C. G. Egberts
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Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Utrecht University Faculty of Science Section Psychopharmacology, Utrecht Institute for Pharmaceutical Sciences, P.O. Box 80082, 3508 TB, Utrecht, The Netherlands

    Joris C. Verster

  2. Somnogen Inc., 8790 112th Street, New York, NY, 11418, USA

    S. R. Pandi-Perumal

  3. Experimental Psychopharmacology Unit, Department of Neuropsychology & Psychopharmacology Faculty of Psychology and Neurosciences, Maastricht University, 6200 MD, Maastricht, The Netherlands

    Johannes G. Ramaekers

  4. Department of Pharmacotherapy and Pharmaceutical Care, University of Groningen, Antonius Deusinglaan 1, 9713 AV, Groningen, The Netherlands

    Johan J. de Gier

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© 2009 Birkhäuser Verlag/Switzerland

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Smink, B.E., Egberts, T.C.G. (2009). The relationship between drug use and traffic accident severity. In: Verster, J.C., Pandi-Perumal, S.R., Ramaekers, J.G., de Gier, J.J. (eds) Drugs, Driving and Traffic Safety. Birkhäuser Basel. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-7643-9923-8_10

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