NEWS: The Age - 17/5/07 'Road crash victims' drug use 'disturbs' doctors'

[lil angel15]

Road crash victims' drug use 'disturbs' doctors
font Carol Nader
May 17, 2007

ONE in three drivers taken to hospital following major car accidents have legal or illicit drugs in their system — a figure doctors believe is "disturbingly high".

Blood samples of drivers injured in car accidents obtained by The Alfred, one of the state's leading trauma hospitals, confirm that illicit drugs contribute to these road collisions.

The drivers were still alive when they got to the hospital's trauma unit, but did not all survive. The Alfred screened 436 injured drivers for drugs between 2000 and 2002 — before the Victorian Government introduced roadside drug testing. Of those, 132 had legal or illegal drugs in their system. When cannabis that had been ingested a few days earlier was taken into consideration, the figure went up to 241 people, or 55 per cent.

The most commonly found drug was traces of cannabis that were smoked several days before the accident and lingered in the system of accident victims. But almost eight per cent of the drivers had taken cannabis recently enough to be affected by it while they were driving.

Benzodiazepines, which include prescription drugs such as sleeping tablets and valium, were found in 15 per cent of the injured drivers, although it would have contributed to just some of the accidents.

Opiates, mainly heroin, were found in more than 10 per cent of the drivers, although professor of emergency medicine at The Alfred Peter Cameron said heroin was not as prevalent now as it was then. And amphetamines, cocaine and methadone were each found in fewer than five per cent of people.

Professor Cameron said many of these drugs would have an impact on people's ability to drive, influencing their decision-making and making them more likely to engage in road rage. "They might be more likely to go at high speed or pass someone recklessly. It's a bit like alcohol; they have less inhibition so they're more likely to do reckless things," he said.

A spokesman for Police Minister Bob Cameron said: "Police figures show that one-third of all people killed on our roads had illegal drugs in their system. "That's why the Bracks Government and the police are unashamedly cracking down on drug-taking by drivers. Victoria is now the world leader in random drug-testing."

The analysis was financed by VicRoads and published in the journal Emergency Medicine Australasia. The authors concluded that the drug usage in this group of injured drivers was "disturbingly high".

"A large proportion of patients had drugs detected, with the potential to impair reaction times and adversely affect judgement of drivers," it concluded. "Our study gives a worrying insight into the potential number of drivers driving under the influence of drugs."

The head of scientific services at the Victorian Institute of Forensic Medicine, Professor Olaf Drummer, who was involved in the analysis, said the numbers reflected a trend in fatally and seriously injured drivers for many years in Victoria. He said it might take some time before there was a reduction in drug-caused road trauma. "Like a lot of these initiatives to deal with drug use and counter measures based on deterrents, often it will take some time to take effect."

The Age

 

[phase_dancer]

When cannabis that had been ingested a few days earlier was taken into consideration, the figure went up to 241 people, or 55 per cent.

Cannabis consumed 'a few days earlier' would, alone, not affect driving ability so why even include this figure?

Of course it's comparatively easy to detect metabolites of cannabis long after it has been consumed, but the above statement does nothing other than show the prevalence of cannabis use generally.

 

[Prince Planet]

Bottom line for me: Drugs in blood does not equate to driver impairment.

 

[juice_soldier]

^i'd disagree, drugs in the bloodstream would be a bell ringer for driver impairment for sure.

Cannabis which had been consumed days before though doesn't hold alot of ground as far as stats go.

 

[retrogradeamnesia]

you can use stats to prove anything...65% of people know that

Opiates, mainly heroin, were found in more than 10 per cent of the drivers

So they test for heroin?

 

[lil angel15]

Drug driver shock
July 26, 2007 02:38pm

ONE in three drivers involved in car smashes are getting behind the wheel drugged, according to blood tests of accident survivors.

A study of Victorian drivers admitted to hospital has found that 30 per cent were under the influence of "downers" or illegal substances - and a third of these had taken a drug "cocktail".

About 16 per cent of the 436 people screened tested positive for tranquilliser medications like sleeping pills or Valium, mostly older women.

And eight per cent were clinically "stoned", mostly younger men. Almost half the entire sample had some sign of cannabis in their system, indicating they had smoked recently.
The report, in the journal Emergency Medicine Australasia, also showed that 11 per cent were under the influence of opiates, like heroin, and four per cent had taken amphetamines.

Lead researcher Dr Chin Wei Ch'ng, an emergency physician at the Alfred Hospital in Melbourne, concluded that drug usage among the group was "disturbingly high".

"It seems a significant proportion of the population are driving under the influence of drugs and that's very worrying," Dr Ch'ng said.

"From what we know about these substances and how they affect the body, there is every likelihood they are slowing down reactions and playing a role in these accidents."

Until now, research has usually focused on the role of alcohol in accidents or the drug levels of those killed in fatal collisions, not the survivors.

The researchers analysed the blood samples of 436 people who were admitted to the hospital for checks or treatment after road crashes between December 2000 and April 2002.

They found about 30 per cent were under the influence of drugs, with one third of these affected by two drugs or more.

Almost all of those affected by cannabis were under 44 years old, mostly men, while prescription "downers" were overwhelmingly taken by older women.

Methadone was found in three per cent of cases and cocaine was detected in just 1.4 per cent.

Dr Ch'ng said while the cocaine rate was considerably lower than overseas findings, it was in line with detection in Australian coroner cases.

He said the drug distribution may have changed since the study period, with a drop in opiates and rise in amphetamines like the party drug ice.

Herald Sun

 

[9mmCensor]

"ONE in three drivers taken to hospital following major car accidents have legal or illicit drugs in their system — a figure doctors believe is "disturbingly high"."

Inversely 2 in 3 drivers did not take drugs. Drugies are better drivers?