PRESS-NEWS.org - Press Release Distribution
PRESS RELEASES DISTRIBUTION

Prescribed medicines are responsible for over 3 percent of road traffic crashes in France

2010-11-16
(Press-News.org) To mark The World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims, which takes place on Sunday November 21st, PLoS Medicine publishes two research articles on Road Traffic Crashes.

The World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims takes place on the third Sunday of November every year as the appropriate acknowledgment of victims of road traffic crashes and their families. It was started by RoadPeace in 1993 and was adopted by the United Nations General Assembly in 2005.

Prescribed medicines are responsible for over 3% of road traffic crashes in France

In France, the effect that all medicines have on driving performance has been classified into 4 levels of risk, from level 0 (no or negligible risk) to level 3 (major risk) and according to a study by Ludivine Orriols, from Université Victor Segalen, Bordeaux, France, and colleagues, level 2 and 3 medicines are responsible for over 3% of road traffic crashes in France. The findings of this study, published in this week's PLoS Medicine, are of international importance because in 2006, the International Council on Alcohol, Drugs and Traffic Safety proposed a classification list based on the French classification system.

The authors identified drivers involved in road traffic crashes in France between July 2005 and May 2008 and used a statistical model to identify factors associated with each driver responsible for a road traffic crash and each driver who was not responsible for a crash.

Overall 72,685 drivers injured in a road traffic crash were part of the study and those who had been prescribed level 2 and level 3 medicines were at higher risk (OR 1.31 and OR 1.25 respectively) of being responsible for the road traffic crash. Furthermore, the authors found that the fraction of road traffic crashes attributable to the use of (prescriptions for) level 2 and 3 medicines was 3.3%.

These results provide strong evidence for the contribution of medicines to the risk of experiencing a road traffic crash and also confirm that the French drug risk classification scheme seems accurate for medicines classified as levels 2 and 3 of risk for road traffic crashes. Therefore, this study reinforces the need for health care workers to provide patients with proper information on the potential effect of any medicine that they are prescribed (or take) on their driving abilities.

INFORMATION:

Funding: The CESIR-A project was funded by the Afssaps, the French National Research Agency (ANR, DAA nu 0766CO204), the French Medical Research Foundation (Equipe FRM), the French National Medical Research Institute (Equipe INSERM Avenir) and the French Direction Generale de la Sante (DGS). LO is the recipient of a doctoral grant from the French National Institute for Medical Research (INSERM) and the Aquitaine region. Members of the Afssaps participated in data collection, interpretation and review of the manuscript. Neither individual from the CESIR research group received any compensation for their assistance. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.

Competing Interests: Emmanuel Lagarde is on the Editorial Board of PLoS Medicine.

Citation: Orriols L, Delorme B, Gadegbeku B, Tricotel A, Contrand B, et al. (2010) Prescription Medicines and the Risk of Road Traffic Crashes: A French Registry-Based Study. PLoS Med 7(11): e1000366. doi:10.1371/journal.pmed.1000366

IN YOUR COVERAGE PLEASE USE THIS URL TO PROVIDE ACCESS TO THE FREELY AVAILABLE PAPER: http://www.plosmedicine.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pmed.1000366

PRESS-ONLY PREVIEW OF THE ARTICLE: www.plos.org/press/plme-07-11-orriols.pdf

CONTACT:

Ludivine Orriols

ludivine.orriols@isped.u-bordeaux2.fr

END



ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Disruptive behaviour disorders in male teenagers associated with increased risk of road crashes

2010-11-16
Disruptive behaviour disorders in male teenagers, such as attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, conduct disorder, and oppositional defiant disorder are associated with about a one-third increase in the risk of being seriously injured in a road traffic crash – either as driver or pedestrian. This increase is similar to the increased relative risk found for patients treated for epilepsy. These are the findings of a study by Donald Redelmeier and colleagues from the University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada, and published in this week's PLoS Medicine. Male teenagers are ...

Analysis of teeth suggests modern humans mature more slowly than Neanderthals did

2010-11-16
CAMBRIDGE, Mass. -- A sophisticated new examination of teeth from 11 Neanderthal and early human fossils shows that modern humans are slower than our ancestors to reach full maturity. The finding suggests that our characteristically slow development and long childhood are recent and unique to our own species, and may have given early humans an evolutionary advantage over Neanderthals. The research, led by scientists at Harvard University, the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Biology (MPI-EVA), and the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility (ESRF), is detailed in ...

'At-TRIB(1)-uting' a gene a new function in the liver

2010-11-16
Specific, relatively uncommon variations at a region of human chromosome 8 have recently been linked to fat (lipid) levels in the blood that decrease an individual's risk of atherosclerosis (a disease of the major arterial blood vessels that is a main cause of heart attack and stroke). The only currently described gene in this region of chromosome 8 is TRIB1, but it has not been previously linked in any way to regulation of lipid levels. Now, a team of researchers, led by Jan Breslow, at The Rockefeller University, New York, and Daniel Rader, at the University of Pennsylvania ...

JCI online early table of contents: Nov. 15, 2010

2010-11-16
EDITOR'S PICK: At-TRIB(1)-uting a gene a new function in the liver Specific, relatively uncommon variations at a region of human chromosome 8 have recently been linked to fat (lipid) levels in the blood that decrease an individual's risk of atherosclerosis (a disease of the major arterial blood vessels that is a main cause of heart attack and stroke). The only currently described gene in this region of chromosome 8 is TRIB1, but it has not been previously linked in any way to regulation of lipid levels. Now, a team of researchers, led by Jan Breslow, at The Rockefeller ...

Health professionals need to take action on water and sanitation issues

2010-11-16
The active involvement of health professionals in hygiene, sanitation, and water supply is absolutely crucial to accelerating and consolidating global health progress, says a new series of papers in PLoS Medicine by a leading group of public health academics and water advocates. Professor Sandy Cairncross from the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine (LSHTM) and colleagues show how water and sanitation issues are woefully neglected across the world and suggest that action could prevent more than 2 million children dying each year. The authors say that in 2010, ...

Use of AEDs in hospitals for cardiac arrest not linked with improved survival

2010-11-16
While automated external defibrillators improve survival for out-of-hospital cardiac arrest, an analysis of data indicates their use for cardiac arrest in a hospital does not result in an improved rate of survival, according to a study in the November 17 issue of JAMA. The study is being released early online because it will be presented at the American Heart Association's annual meeting. Use of automated external defibrillators (AEDs) has been proposed as a strategy to reduce times to defibrillation and improve survival from cardiac arrests that occur in the hospital ...

Common for patients to undergo multiple cardiac imaging tests, with high cumulative radiation dose

2010-11-16
Multiple testing with the cardiac diagnostic imaging technique of myocardial perfusion imaging is common, and in many patients is associated with a high cumulative estimated radiation dose, according to a study in the November 17 issue of JAMA. The study is being released early online because it is being presented at the American Heart Association's annual meeting. Use of medical imaging has grown rapidly in recent years, but along with the potential benefits has come an increase in the amount of ionizing radiation associated with many such tests and the accompanying ...

Biomarker may be able to help predict risk of heart failure, cardiovascular death

2010-11-16
Certain measures of the blood biomarker cardiac troponin T (cTnT), a cardiac-specific protein, using a highly sensitive test, are associated with the development of heart failure or cardiovascular death in older adults, according to a study that will appear in the December 8 issue of JAMA. The study is being released early online because it will be presented at the American Heart Association's annual meeting. "Older adults comprise the majority of new-onset heart failure (HF) diagnoses, but traditional risk-factor prediction models have limited accuracy in this population ...

Surgical instruments left in children rarely fatal, but dangerous

2010-11-16
Surgical items, such as sponges and small instruments, left in the bodies of children who undergo surgery are quite uncommon and rarely fatal but decidedly dangerous and expensive mistakes, according to a Johns Hopkins Children's Center study to be published in the November issue of JAMA-Archives of Surgery. Such errors added eight days, on average, to a young patient's hospital stay and nearly $36,000 in extra hospital charges, both stemming from complications and the need for follow-up surgery to retrieve the forgotten objects. Analyzing more than 1.9 million records ...

Use of omega-3 does not appear to reduce recurrence of atrial fibrillation

2010-11-16
Although some data have suggested that omega-3 fatty acid supplements, such as from fish oil, may improve treatment of atrial fibrillation, a randomized trial with more than 600 patients finds that treatment with high-dose prescription omega-3 did not reduce the recurrence of atrial fibrillation over six months, according to a study that will appear in the December 1 issue of JAMA. The study is being released early online because it will be presented at the American Heart Association's annual meeting. "Atrial fibrillation (AF) is a highly prevalent disease that is responsible ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

Sugar, the hidden thermostat in plants

Personality can explain why some CEOs earn higher salaries

This puzzle game shows kids how they’re smarter than AI

Study suggests remembrances of dead played role in rise of architecture in Andean region

Brain stimulation can boost math learning in people with weaker neural connections

Inhibiting enzyme could halt cell death in Parkinson’s disease, study finds

Neurotechnology reverses biological disadvantage in maths learning

UNDER EMBARGO: Neurotechnology reverses biological disadvantage in maths learning

Scientists target ‘molecular machine’ in the war against antimicrobial resistance

Extending classical CNOP method for deep-learning atmospheric and oceanic forecasting

Aston University research: Parents should encourage structure and independence around food to support children’s healthy eating

Thunderstorms are a major driver of tree death in tropical forests

Danforth Plant Science Center adds two new faculty members

Robotic eyes mimic human vision for superfast response to extreme lighting

Racial inequities and access to COVID-19 treatment

Residential segregation and lung cancer risk in African American adults

Scientists wipe out aggressive brain cancer tumors by targeting cellular ‘motors’

Capturability distinction analysis of continuous and pulsed guidance laws

CHEST expands Bridging Specialties Initiative to include NTM disease and bronchiectasis on World Bronchiectasis Day

Exposure to air pollution may cause heart damage

SwRI, UTSA selected by NASA to test electrolyzer technology aboard parabolic flight

Prebiotics might be a factor in preventing or treating issues caused by low brain GABA

Youngest in class at higher risk of mental health problems

American Heart Association announces new volunteer leaders for 2025-26

Gut microbiota analysis can help catch gestational diabetes

FAU’s Paulina DeVito awarded prestigious NSF Graduate Research Fellowship

Champions for change – Paid time off initiative just made clinical trials participation easier

Fentanyl detection through packaging

Prof. Eran Meshorer elected to EMBO for pioneering work in epigenetics

New 3D glacier visualizations provide insights into a hotter Earth

[Press-News.org] Prescribed medicines are responsible for over 3 percent of road traffic crashes in France