Physical frailty and fitness of older driver
Abstract
Aim: to analyze the association between physical frailty and the results of fitness capacity exams for driving vehicles among elder Brazilians.
Methods: this is a cross sectional study, performed in traffic medicine clinics of the city of Curitiba (Brazil). The data was collected through the physical frailty tests, the use of a structured questionnaire, and searches on the records of the Brazilian National Register of Qualified Drivers.To analyze the information, the authors used descriptive statistics and non-parametrical tests.
Results: One hundred seventy two elderly people, of whom 56.4% pre-fragile and 43.6% non-fragile. 25.0% were considered fit for driving, 68.6% were considered fit, but with some restrictions, and 6.4% were placed as temporarily unfit for driving. There was no association between frailty condition and the final results for driving fitness (p= 0.8934). Physical frailty was significantly associated to the restrictions observed for those who were fit under restrictions (p= 0.0313), according to the weekly amount of kilometers traveled (p= 0.0222), and to car accidents occurred after the age of 60 (p= 0.0165).
Conclusion: Physical frailty was significantly associated to the restrictions related to driving, reason to which makes important to manage frailty over this group of drivers. However, no association observed between physical frailty and the final result for driving vehicles.
Authors
Downloads
Keywords
- Frail Elderly
- Physical Fitness
- Driving License Exam
References
Instituto Brasileiro de Geografia e Estatística (IBGE). Pesquisa Nacional por Amostra de Domicílio. Síntese de Indicadores 2015. Resultados. Tabela 1.3 População residente, por grupos de idade, segundo as Unidades da Federação 2014-2015. Available from: http://www.ibge.gov.br/home/estatistica/populacao/trabalhoerendimento/pnad2015/sintese_defaultxls.shtm.
United Nations, Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division (2015). World Population Prospects: The 2015 Revision, Key Findings and Advance Tables. Working Paper No. ESA/P/WP.241.United Nations, Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division World Population Prospects: The 2015 Revision, Key Findings and Advance Tables. 2015
Brasil. Departamento de Trânsito do Paraná (DETRAN). Anuário Estatístico 2015. 2015. Accessed: 2016 12; Available from: http://www.detran.pr.gov.br/arquivos/File/estatisticasdetransito/anuario/Anuario15.pdf.
Langford J, Koppel S. Epidemiology of older driver crashes-identifying older driver risk factors and exposure patterns. Transp Res Part F Traffic Psychol Behav. 2006; 9: 309-21.
Coxon K, Chevalier A, Lo S, Ivers R, Brown J, Keay L. Behind the Wheel: Predictors of driving exposure in older drivers. J Am Geriatr Soc 2015; 63(6):1137-45.
Conselho Nacional de Trânsito (CONTRAN). Resolução n.o425, de 27 de novembro de 2012. Dispõe sobre o exame de aptidão física e mental, a avaliação psicológica e o credenciamento das entidades públicas e privadas de que tratam o art. 147, I e §§ 1o a 4o e o art. 148 do Código de Trânsito Brasileiro. Brasília, DF: Diário Oficial da União; 2012.
Conselho Nacional de Trânsito (CONTRAN). Resolução n.o7, de 23 de janeiro de 1998, que tratam da formação de condutores e dos procedimentos para a habilitação. Brasília, DF: Diário Oficial da União; 1998.
Morley JE, Vellas B, van Kan GA, Anker SD, Bauer JM, Bernabei R, et al. Frailty Consensus: A Call to Action. J Am Med Dir Assoc. 2013; 14(6):392-7.
Fried LP, Tangen CM, Walston J, Newman AB, Hirsch C, Gottdiener J, et al. Cardiovascular Health Study Collaborative Research Group. Frailty in older adults: evidence for a phenotype. J Gerontol A BiolSci Med Sci. 2001; 56(3):146-56.
Lustosa L, Pereira D, Dias R, Britto R, Pereira L. Tradução, adaptação transcultural e análise das propriedades psicométricas do Questionário Minnesota de Atividades Físicas e de Lazer. Geriatr Gerontol. 2011; 5(2):57-65.
Bandeen-Roche K, Seplaki CL, Huang J, Buta B, Kalyani RR, Varadhan R, et al. Frailty in Older Adults: A Nationally Representative Profile in the United States. J Gerontol A Biol Sci Med Sci. 2015; 70(11):1427-34.
Chen CY, Wu SC, Chen LJ, Lue BH. The prevalence of subjective frailty and factors associated with frailty in Taiwan. Arch Gerontol Geriatr. 2010; 50(Suppl 1): S43-7.
Runzer-Colmenares FM, Samper-Ternent R, Al Snih S, Ottenbacher KJ, Parodi, JF, Wong R. Prevalence and factors associated with frailty among Peruvian older adults. Arch Gerontol Geriatr. 2013; 58(1):69-73.
Gomez F, Curcio CL, Henao GM. Fragilidad en ancianos colombianos. Rev Med Sanitas. 2012; 15(4):8-16.
Neri AL, Yassuda MS, Araújo LF, Eulálio MC, Cabral BE, Siqueira ME, et al. Metodologia e perfil sociodemográfico, cognitivo e de fragilidade de idosos comunitários de sete cidades brasileiras: Estudo FIBRA. Cad. Saude Publica. 2013; 29(4):778-92.
Naumann RB, Dellinger AM, Kresnow M. Driving self-restriction in high-risk conditions: How old drivers compare to others. J Safety Res. 2011; 42(1): 67-71.
Betz ME, Lowesnstein SR. Driving patterns of older adults: results from the second injury control and risk survey. J Am Geriatr Soc. 2010; 58(10):1931-5.
Cantón-Cortés D, Segura MD, Ramírez CC. Conducción y envejecimiento. Rev Esp Geriatr Gerontol. 2010; 45(1):30-7.
Brasil. Lei n.o9503, de 23 de setembro de 1997. Institui o Código de Trânsito Brasileiro. Brasília, DF: Diário Oficial da União; 1997.
Edwards JD, Perkins M, Ross, LA, Reynolds SL. Driving status and three-year mortality among community-dwelling older. J Gerontol A BiolSci Med Sci. 2009; 64(2):300-5.
![Creative Commons License](http://i.creativecommons.org/l/by/4.0/88x31.png)
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
The copy rights of the articles published in Colombia Médica belong to the Universidad del Valle. The contents of the articles that appear in the Journal are exclusively the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the Editorial Committee of the Journal. It is allowed to reproduce the material published in Colombia Médica without prior authorization for non-commercial use