Abstract
Obstructive sleep Apnoea (OSA) is a common sleep disorder linked to
poor driving performance and increased motor vehicle accident (MVA)
risk. Driving is a complex, multifactor task that relies on continuous
attention, vigilance, motor and visual coordination. Technological
advances in the last 25 years have enabled the development of complex
driving simulators that more closely mimic the real driving environment. Also, some researchers have recently taken the next step from
driving simulation and have utilised dual control, instrumented vehicles
to examine real on-road driving in OSA patients. However, on-road
driving assessment and advanced driving simulators, while more realistic are costly and in the case of on-road assessment, potentially dangerous. It is reasonable to ask, therefore, weather they provide more
valid data?
The Divided Attention Steering Simulator (DASS) developed in the
UK and the AusEd driving simulator developed jointly by UK and
Australian investigators are simple relatively inexpensive computer
based simulators able to acquire steering and speed deviation, divided
attention, braking reaction and crash data at 10 Hz and 30 Hz respectively. The INRETS and the OKTAL simulator developed in France are
more advanced with real car interior controls to manoeuvre the vehicle.
They use large high defi nition display (3D for the OKTAL) and collect
more comprehensive data from fuel consumption to steering, braking
and crashes. On-road vehicles equipped with dual controls and video
cameras able to detect lane position have now been used by French
sleep researchers. The use of professional driving instructors to assess
driving performance during on-road driving has also been used in
Australia.
When simple simulators such as the DASS have been compared to
real driving, simulator performance measures correlate with on-road
performance (relative validity) but tend to overestimate and magnify
performance impairments relative to real driving. Higher fi delity simulators are found to more precisely represent real driving approaching
“absolute validity”. The use of driving simulators and on-road driving
experiments in patients with OSA reveal that regardless of which
driving assessment tool is used, OSA patients’ consistently show signifi -
cantly worse performance compared to non-OSA subjects, often with
large effect sizes.
Basic and more advanced driving simulators are useful to detect
driving performance impairment in OSA patients particularly in simple
experimental designs. With further development of high fi delity validated driving simulators, these tools should become more accessible
and provide more reliable information on driving performance in OSA
and other populations at risk of MVAs and allow for more complicated
and realistic experimental designs.
poor driving performance and increased motor vehicle accident (MVA)
risk. Driving is a complex, multifactor task that relies on continuous
attention, vigilance, motor and visual coordination. Technological
advances in the last 25 years have enabled the development of complex
driving simulators that more closely mimic the real driving environment. Also, some researchers have recently taken the next step from
driving simulation and have utilised dual control, instrumented vehicles
to examine real on-road driving in OSA patients. However, on-road
driving assessment and advanced driving simulators, while more realistic are costly and in the case of on-road assessment, potentially dangerous. It is reasonable to ask, therefore, weather they provide more
valid data?
The Divided Attention Steering Simulator (DASS) developed in the
UK and the AusEd driving simulator developed jointly by UK and
Australian investigators are simple relatively inexpensive computer
based simulators able to acquire steering and speed deviation, divided
attention, braking reaction and crash data at 10 Hz and 30 Hz respectively. The INRETS and the OKTAL simulator developed in France are
more advanced with real car interior controls to manoeuvre the vehicle.
They use large high defi nition display (3D for the OKTAL) and collect
more comprehensive data from fuel consumption to steering, braking
and crashes. On-road vehicles equipped with dual controls and video
cameras able to detect lane position have now been used by French
sleep researchers. The use of professional driving instructors to assess
driving performance during on-road driving has also been used in
Australia.
When simple simulators such as the DASS have been compared to
real driving, simulator performance measures correlate with on-road
performance (relative validity) but tend to overestimate and magnify
performance impairments relative to real driving. Higher fi delity simulators are found to more precisely represent real driving approaching
“absolute validity”. The use of driving simulators and on-road driving
experiments in patients with OSA reveal that regardless of which
driving assessment tool is used, OSA patients’ consistently show signifi -
cantly worse performance compared to non-OSA subjects, often with
large effect sizes.
Basic and more advanced driving simulators are useful to detect
driving performance impairment in OSA patients particularly in simple
experimental designs. With further development of high fi delity validated driving simulators, these tools should become more accessible
and provide more reliable information on driving performance in OSA
and other populations at risk of MVAs and allow for more complicated
and realistic experimental designs.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Article number | I012 |
| Pages (from-to) | A3-A4 |
| Number of pages | 2 |
| Journal | Sleep and Biological Rhythms |
| Volume | 8 |
| Issue number | Suppl 1 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - Oct 2010 |
| Event | Sleep Down Under 2010: Biodiversity of Sleep. Australian Sleep Association and Australian Sleep Technologists Association 22nd Annual Scientific Meeting. - Duration: 21 Oct 2010 → … |