“Drivers who reported frequency of sleepy driving as ‘never,’ ‘rarely,’ and ‘sometimes’ also had higher a risk, indicating that crash or near-crash risk is also associated with sources other than these sleeping disorders,” the authors noted. These drivers’ increased odds of getting into or nearly getting into a crash ranged from 31% to 53% greater (P less than .05).
All drivers with shift work sleep disorder, except for those aged 20-24, had a crash or near-crash rate that was 7.5 times greater than that of drivers without any sleeping disorders. The rate among drivers aged 20-24 with this disorder had a 90% lower rate (risk ratio [RR] = 0.1, P less than .05) compared with control drivers.
When the researchers analyzed the drivers’ maneuvers just before a crash or near-crash, they found females with sleep apnea had a 36% greater odds of doing an unsafe maneuver in crash/near-crash circumstances (AOR = 1.36). (AOR = 3.38 and 3.53, respectively, P less than .05).
The only drivers with a sleeping disorder who were more likely to be involved in crashes of greater severity were those with periodic limb movement disorder (AOR = 1.43, P less than .05).