Fits and other causes of loss of consciousness while driving

Abstract

Accounts of incidents in which a driver lost consciousness or had a fit at the wheel were obtained from 92 patients who attended a neurological clinic and 131 press reports. Of these episodes 78 per cent were attributed to fits, coronary thrombosis or sleep. Fits and coronary thrombosis, of which drivers frequently had some premonition, caused few serious accidents, although the latter was usually lethal. Drivers who fell asleep, by contrast, often did so without warning, on arterial roads and in commercial vehicles. This group, which represented 27 per cent of the entire series, accounted for 83 per cent of deaths attributable to trauma. Similar problems concerning other forms of transport were noted.