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The Alzheimer's Support Network News, Sept.-Oct. 1998 Putting the Brakes on Driving: Individuals with Dementia Shouldn't Drive, But How Can You Stop Them? Driving is a complex activity which necessitates quick reactions, clear sensory abilities, and split-second decisions. For the person with Alzheimer's disease, driving becomes a safety issue. While he or she may not recognize that changes in cognitive and sensory skills impair driving abilities, you and other family members will need to be firm in your efforts to prevent the person from driving. Because driving is a learned skill, a confused person can still appear to be driving well when he/she is not really a safe driver. Driving requires a highly complex interaction of eyes, brain and muscle and the ability to solve complicated problems quickly. A person who is still apparently driving safely may have lost the ability to respond appropriately to an unexpected problem on the road. He/she may be relying entirely on the habits of driving and may not be able to change quickly from a habitual response to a new response when the situation demands it. Considering the person's feeling of loss of independence can aid families in their actions to help the person understand why he/she can no longer drive safely. Assisting the person with dementia to make the decision to stop driving can be useful in helping to maintain a positive sense of self-esteem. Study results To better understand the effects of Alzheimer's on driving, research is focusing on people with Alzheimer's disease. Results from studies conducted at Johns Hopkins University and at the National Institute on Aging (NIA) support the belief that people should not be allowed to drive after a diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease. In the Hopkins study, more than 40% of patients studied had been in an accident after a diagnosis of the disease. In addition, 11% had caused accidents; 44% had gotten lost routinely; and 75% continually drove below the speed limit. In California, preliminary road and laboratory studies (at Sepulveda VA and UCLA) indicate that even persons with early Alzheimer's have markedly eroded driving skills. In another study of Alzheimer's patients still driving, common mistakes included:
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