The University of Adelaide CENTRE FOR AUTOMOTIVE SAFETY RESEARCH

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Publication Details

TitleCardiac disease and driver fatality
AuthorsO'Donovan S, van den Heuvel C, Baldock MRJ, Byard RW
Year2021
TypeUnknown
AbstractA retrospective review of autopsy files at Forensic Science South Australia (FSSA) in Adelaide, Australia was undertaken over a 13 year period between January 2005 and December 2017 for motor vehicle drivers aged ≥ 40 years who died while driving a vehicle. Autopsy examinations were performed on 303 drivers and 72 passengers. Of those traumatic fatalities, 48 (15.8%) of drivers had severe stenosis compared to 15 passengers (20.8%) and was not statistically significant. Although a concern was that drivers with significant cardiac disease may have increased rates of death in crashes with the causative role of the underlying cardiac disease obscured by trauma, this does not appear to be the case. Instead there is a distinct subgroup of drivers who die from cardiac events, and not trauma, while driving who may be increasing in number given the aging population.
Conference Name2021 Australasian Road Safety Conference
Conference AbbreviationARSC21
Conference LocationMelbourne, Australia
Conference Date28-30 September 2021
Page Range208-209
NotesAvailable online via ARSC website
https://australasianroadsafetyconference.com.au/history-of-arsc/

Reference
O'Donovan S, van den Heuvel C, Baldock MRJ, Byard RW (2021). Cardiac disease and driver fatality. 2021 Australasian Road Safety Conference, Melbourne, Australia, 28-30 September 2021. [PRESENTED ABSTRACT]