The Effects Of Mixing Alcohol And Prescription Drugs On Driving And Cognitive Performance: A Randomised Simulator Study.
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$495,226.00
Summary
A large proportion of traffic accidents are linked to alcohol and prescription drug use. There is poor understanding of these drugs on driving performance, both alone and in combination with alcohol. This study examines the effects of commonly used prescription medications (diazepam and codeine) and alcohol, in combination, on driving-related skills and cognitive performance in healthy volunteers. The results of this study will inform future policy, and clinical and public health strategies.
Buckle Up Safely: Pre-school Based Interventions For Appropriate Use Of Child Restraints.
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$731,552.00
Summary
Despite overwhelming evidence that child restraints dramatically reduce the risk of death and injury there are currently a large number of children globally who either do not use appropriate child restraints, or misuse them, contributing to the overwhelming burden of road traffic injury in children. This project, using rigorous methodology, will assess the efficacy of feasible, evidence based interventions aimed at increased use of appropriate restraints, and decreasing misuse.
The Relationship Between Fatigue, Sleepiness And Crash Risk While Driving
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$444,070.00
Summary
Driver fatigue is a major road safety problem that is currently managed by encouraging drivers to take breaks when they feel tired. Unfortunately we dont know whether drivers really are able to detect when they are too tired to drive safely or, if they can make this judgement, whether and what motivates them to stop driving. This research will look at driver awareness of fatigue effects and what indicators and motivators can be used to encourage them to respond to signs of impaired driving.
A Healthy Promoting School Approach To Encourage Children To Wear Helmets
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$165,708.00
Summary
Each year around sixty Australians die as a result of bicycle crashes and thousands more are injured, some so severely they are permanently disabled. The largest proportion of the population affected by bicycle-related injuries are children and adolescents. These injuries are largely preventable if riders wore helmets. Some studies suggest wearing a helmet reduces the likelihood of head injury by more than 75%. Approximately 80% of Western Australian primary school students who ride to school we ....Each year around sixty Australians die as a result of bicycle crashes and thousands more are injured, some so severely they are permanently disabled. The largest proportion of the population affected by bicycle-related injuries are children and adolescents. These injuries are largely preventable if riders wore helmets. Some studies suggest wearing a helmet reduces the likelihood of head injury by more than 75%. Approximately 80% of Western Australian primary school students who ride to school wear a helmet. Students aged 10-12 years are on the cusp of a dramatic decline in helmet usage - secondary school students helmet usage rates are observed at 43%. This project aims to provide a supportive school environment for road users, and with the assistance of their peers, skill children with strategies and dialogue to resist peer pressure not to wear a helmet in order to arrest this rate of decline when they reach secondary school. This three-year study will compare the impact of a whole-school road safety intervention based on the health promoting school model to the standard road safety curriculum. For the study cohort ie: Year 5 - 6 students, the focus will be on bicycle safety, in particular, correct helmet usage. The intervention includes innovative participatory strategies to develop a supportive school environment for road users plus peer-teacher classroom activities that encourage the correct use of bicycle helmets for Year 5 - 6 students (and their parents). The intervention trial will be conducted with 30 Western Australian primary schools in 2000 and 2001. Other target groups of the intervention are teachers, Year 7 peer teachers, school administrators and the school community. Potential benefits of this project include the provision of a model health promoting school intervention to increase the frequency of correct helmet wearing by children which in time may lead to a reduction in bicycle-related morbidity and mortality in Western Australia.Read moreRead less
Cohort Study Of Risk Factors For Young Driver Injuries
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$689,830.00
Summary
Injuries impose a substantial burden on young people, both in Australia and internationally. In 1998, 70% of all deaths among young men, and 57% of deaths among young women, aged 15-24 years in Australia were due to injuries. The single largest cause of injury-related fatalities, hospital admissions and emergency department presentations among this age group is transport-related incidents. Technological advances in motor vehicle engineering and road design, and the implementation of various road ....Injuries impose a substantial burden on young people, both in Australia and internationally. In 1998, 70% of all deaths among young men, and 57% of deaths among young women, aged 15-24 years in Australia were due to injuries. The single largest cause of injury-related fatalities, hospital admissions and emergency department presentations among this age group is transport-related incidents. Technological advances in motor vehicle engineering and road design, and the implementation of various road safety measures, such as random breath testing, have led to an overall decline in the incidence of motor vehicle-related injuries in Australia in the past three decades. However, young people still have substantially higher rates of motor vehicle-related mortality than older people. This suggests that if the burden of injuries among young drivers is to be reduced to levels that are at least as comparable with those in other age-groups, then the identification of factors that are specifically associated with an increased risk of motor vehicle injury among young people, must be a priority. The current study aims to determine the role of several postulated risk factors in the incidence of young driver injuries. The specific risk factors to be examined include pre-licence road and driving exposure-experience; type, quality and quantity of driver training; and road risk perceptions and engagement in sensation seeking behaviours. The study also seeks to determine whether factors associated with increased risk of driver injury are the same for different socio-economic groups and for different ethnic and cultural groups. Information obtained in this study should provide reliable evidence about causal factors for motor vehicle crash injury among young drivers. Such information should be useful to licensing and road safety professionals, in the design of practical road safety strategies aimed at reducing the burden of young driver injuries.Read moreRead less
Neurobiological Effects Of Sleep Apnea And Sleepiness
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$320,437.00
Summary
Sleep apnea affects over one million Australians. It not only affects the quality of a persons sleep and the oxygen supply to their brain, but can cause sleepiness during the day which can in turn affect the ability of the person to conduct their normal activities. Over 30,000 sleep studies are conducted annually in Australia and current therapies result in significant improvements in the quality of life of the patient. However, the data analysis during these studies does not give a clear indica ....Sleep apnea affects over one million Australians. It not only affects the quality of a persons sleep and the oxygen supply to their brain, but can cause sleepiness during the day which can in turn affect the ability of the person to conduct their normal activities. Over 30,000 sleep studies are conducted annually in Australia and current therapies result in significant improvements in the quality of life of the patient. However, the data analysis during these studies does not give a clear indication of the degree to which individual patients may have problems with performing their normal tasks during the day. Tasks like driving vehicles are of particular interest due to the potential for accidents through fatigue or a lack of concentration. This research is designed to investigate the impact of sleep apnea on brain function and daytime performance using certain new techniques - more sophisticated analysis of the brain's activity, detection of brain chemicals and metabolism using a specific form of brain scan called MR spectroscopy, a special monotonous computer based driving simulator, an other tests of performance. We will assess a large group of patients with sleep apnea to determine how the impact of sleep apnea on performance may be differ throughout the population and how this may be affected by the current standard treatment for sleep apnea. We will examine the impact on brain function and performance of removing the current standard therapy in a group of patients previously diagnosed with sleep apnea (as this is a common occurrence in the community). We will also repeat some specific measurements on a control group without any symptoms of sleep apnea for the purpose of comparison. We plan to show a relationship between the effects of sleep apnea and the ability of a person to carry out activities such as driving and thinking. We will then be able to better assess the risk a patient may face and the most appropriate way to treat them.Read moreRead less