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Driving Behavior and Use of Advanced Driver Assistance Systems by People with and without Age-related Macular Degeneration
Published 2021 by Aprile Doubt
Co-Author(s): Bradley Dougherty, Rebecca A. Deffler, San-San Cooley, Frederick Davidorf, Jing Xu, Abbie Hutton, Ava K. Bittner, Alex R. Bowers, Shirin E. Hassan, Shirin E. Hassan, Nicole Ross, Anusha Bhojani,RADARS Study Group
Program Number: 210033
Article Type: Scientific Program
PURPOSE:
Drivers with age-related macular degeneration (AMD) may utilize various strategies to continue driving safely, including avoidance of driving conditions perceived to be challenging, reduction of weekly mileage and utilization of advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS). It has been reported that these systems, including forward collision warning and blind spot detection, improve the driving safety of older and normally sighted drivers. The purpose of this study was to assess driving avoidance behaviors, ADAS use, and trust in vehicle technology in patients with AMD.
METHODS:
Current drivers aged 60+ years were recruited at four sites (the Ohio State University, University of California, Los Angeles, New England College of Optometry, and Envision Research Institute) to complete a cross-sectional survey about assistive technology in cars and driving habits. Questions about difficult driving situations and conditions were asked, including avoidance of: freeways and interstate highways, cities, peak-hour traffic, high traffic roads, left turns across oncoming traffic, roundabouts, long distance driving, night driving, bad weather, bright sunny weather and driving alone. An 11-item avoidance scale was created from the questions and Rasch analysis was used to generate an avoidance score for each subject. Subjects were asked about their weekly driving mileage, opinion of road safety where they drive regularly, trust in vehicle technology and perception of ADAS. Spearman correlation and Kruskal-Wallis tests were used to assess relationships among patient characteristics, avoidance, and ADAS use.
RESULTS:
One hundred sixty-six participants completed the survey (80 with AMD vs. 86 without, 52% female). Subjects with AMD were slightly older (75±10 years vs. 72±7 years, p<.001), had poorer self-rated vision (66% good to excellent rating vs. 98%), and drove significantly fewer miles per week (median (IQR) 30 (60) miles vs. 60 (91) miles, p<.001) than those without. The 11-item avoidance scale was unidimensional with all items fitting the Rasch model. Subjects with AMD had higher avoidance scores than those without AMD (p<.001). Greater avoidance was related to lower reported mileage (p<.001). There was no difference in the mean number of reported ADAS used among those with or without AMD (p=.22). Increased trust in technology was significantly associated with greater number of ADAS used among all participants (p=.003). A greater reported number of ADAS used was associated with less avoidance of difficult situations and conditions (p=.02).
CONCLUSION:
Drivers with AMD reported more avoidance of difficult situations and less mileage than those without AMD. Use of ADAS may allow these drivers to drive more, and in more challenging situations. More work on the effects of ADAS use on driving habits and driving performance is warranted.
Drivers with age-related macular degeneration (AMD) may utilize various strategies to continue driving safely, including avoidance of driving conditions perceived to be challenging, reduction of weekly mileage and utilization of advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS). It has been reported that these systems, including forward collision warning and blind spot detection, improve the driving safety of older and normally sighted drivers. The purpose of this study was to assess driving avoidance behaviors, ADAS use, and trust in vehicle technology in patients with AMD.
METHODS:
Current drivers aged 60+ years were recruited at four sites (the Ohio State University, University of California, Los Angeles, New England College of Optometry, and Envision Research Institute) to complete a cross-sectional survey about assistive technology in cars and driving habits. Questions about difficult driving situations and conditions were asked, including avoidance of: freeways and interstate highways, cities, peak-hour traffic, high traffic roads, left turns across oncoming traffic, roundabouts, long distance driving, night driving, bad weather, bright sunny weather and driving alone. An 11-item avoidance scale was created from the questions and Rasch analysis was used to generate an avoidance score for each subject. Subjects were asked about their weekly driving mileage, opinion of road safety where they drive regularly, trust in vehicle technology and perception of ADAS. Spearman correlation and Kruskal-Wallis tests were used to assess relationships among patient characteristics, avoidance, and ADAS use.
RESULTS:
One hundred sixty-six participants completed the survey (80 with AMD vs. 86 without, 52% female). Subjects with AMD were slightly older (75±10 years vs. 72±7 years, p<.001), had poorer self-rated vision (66% good to excellent rating vs. 98%), and drove significantly fewer miles per week (median (IQR) 30 (60) miles vs. 60 (91) miles, p<.001) than those without. The 11-item avoidance scale was unidimensional with all items fitting the Rasch model. Subjects with AMD had higher avoidance scores than those without AMD (p<.001). Greater avoidance was related to lower reported mileage (p<.001). There was no difference in the mean number of reported ADAS used among those with or without AMD (p=.22). Increased trust in technology was significantly associated with greater number of ADAS used among all participants (p=.003). A greater reported number of ADAS used was associated with less avoidance of difficult situations and conditions (p=.02).
CONCLUSION:
Drivers with AMD reported more avoidance of difficult situations and less mileage than those without AMD. Use of ADAS may allow these drivers to drive more, and in more challenging situations. More work on the effects of ADAS use on driving habits and driving performance is warranted.
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