Lyngby, Denmark–(ENEWSPF)–August 1, 2013. A driver’s risk of being severely injured in an accident is highest after having either consumed alcohol alone, resulting in a blood/alcohol level above .08, or in combination with other psychoactive substances, according to the findings of a population-based case-controlled study published online in the journal Accident Analysis and Prevention.
Danish researchers assessed the overall risk of a driver being severely injured in an accident after having consumed alcohol, illicit substances, or various types of pharmaceutical drugs, including opioids, benzodiazepenes, or so-called ‘Z-drugs’ (sedatives/sleep aids) such as Ambien. Case samples (N = 2490) were collected from severely injured drivers in selected hospitals in six European countries. Cases were matched against nearly 16,000 randomly stopped controls. Odds rations were adjusted for age, gender and country.
Investigators reported: “The highest risk of the driver being severely injured was associated with driving positive for high concentrations of alcohol (≥0.8 g/L), alone or in combination with other psychoactive substances. …The second most risky category contained various drug-drug combinations, amphetamines and medicinal opioids. Medium increased risk was associated with medium sized BACs (at or above 0.5 g/L, below 0.8 g/L) and benzoylecgonine. The least risky drug seemed to be cannabis and benzodiazepines and Z-drugs.”
They concluded, “[A]mong psychoactive substances alcohol still poses the largest problem in terms of driver risk of getting injured.”
Full text of the study, “Risk of severe driver injury by driving with psychoactive substances,” appears online in Accident Analysis and Prevention.
Source: http://norml.org
