@article{ref1,
title="Syncope while driving and the risk of a subsequent motor vehicle crash",
journal="Annals of emergency medicine",
year="2023",
author="Staples, John A. and Erdelyi, Shannon and Merchant, Ketki and Yip, Candace and Khan, Mayesha and Redelmeier, Donald A. and Chan, Herbert and Brubacher, Jeffrey R.",
volume="ePub",
number="ePub",
pages="ePub-ePub",
abstract="STUDY OBJECTIVE: Syncope that occurs while driving can result in a motor vehicle crash. Whether individuals with a prior syncope-related crash exhibit an exceptional risk of subsequent crash remains uncertain. <br><br>METHODS: We performed a population-based retrospective observational study of patients diagnosed with 'syncope and collapse' at any of 6 emergency departments in British Columbia, Canada (2010 to 2015). Data were obtained from chart abstraction, administrative health records, insurance claims and police crash reports. We compared crash-free survival among individuals with crash-associated syncope (a crash and an emergency visit for syncope on the same date) to that among controls with syncope alone (no crash on date of emergency visit for syncope). <br><br>RESULTS: In the year following their index emergency visit, 13 of 63 drivers with crash-associated syncope and 852 of 9,160 controls with syncope alone experienced a subsequent crash as a driver (crash risk 21% versus 9%). After accounting for censoring and potential confounders, crash-associated syncope was not associated with a significant increase in the risk of subsequent crash (adjusted hazard ratio [aHR] 1.38, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.78 to 2.47). Individuals with crash-associated syncope were 31-fold more likely to have physician driving advice documented during their index visit (prevalence ratio 31.0, 95% CI, 21.3 to 45.1). In the subgroup without documented driving advice, crash-associated syncope was associated with a significant increase in subsequent crash risk (aHR 1.88, 95% CI 1.06 to 3.36). <br><br>CONCLUSIONS: Crash risk after crash-associated syncope appears similar to crash risk after syncope alone.<p /> <p>Language: en</p>",
language="en",
issn="0196-0644",
doi="10.1016/j.annemergmed.2023.09.015",
url="http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.annemergmed.2023.09.015"
}