Sleep Apnea and Bus Drivers

From the Atlanat Injury Law and Civil Litigation Blog

April 25, 2005 8:32 PM Posted By Ken Shigley Comments / Questions (0)

8 die due to bus driver's sleep apnea and trucking company's poor brake maintenance

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration has determined that bus driver fatigue combined with poor brake maintenance by a trucking company tired driver to kill eight on a Texas church bus in 2003. As is commonly the case, the church that owned the bus was never informed that it was required to comply with Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations, including driver medical qualifications. The bus driver, who had chronic insomnia and sleep apnea, had never obtained the required medical certificate. The bus struck a tractor-trailer that had been pulled off on the side of the Interstate when poorly maintained brakes began smoking. See Newsday article.

The Shigley Law Firm represents plaintiffs in wrongful death and catastrophic injury cases statewide in Georgia, and in other states subject to the multijurisdictional practice and pro hac vice rules in each state. Ken Shigley was designated as a "SuperLawyer" in Atlanta Magazine and one of the "Legal Elite" in Georgia Trend Magazine. He is a Certified Civil Trial Advocate of the National Board of Trial Advocacy, Chair of the Southeastern Motor Carrier Liability Institute and former chair of the Georgia Insurance Law Institute. He particularly focuses on cases arising from truck wrecks and accidents (tractor trailers truck wrecks, semi truck wrecks,18 wheeler truck wrecks, big rig truck wrecks, log truck wrecks, dump truck wrecks).

 

ORIGINAL ARTICLE

Sleepiness and sleep-related accidents in commercial bus drivers

Marjorie Vennelle & Heather M. Engleman & Neil J. Douglas

Received: 6 March 2009 / Accepted: 15 June 2009

# Springer-Verlag 2009

Sleep Breath

DOI 10.1007/s11325-009-0277-z

 

 

Abstract:

Introduction Professional drivers are at high risk of sleepiness due to a combination of factors including shift work and obstructive sleep apnea/hypopnea syndrome (OSAHS), and sleepiness in professional drivers is highly dangerous. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of excessive daytime sleepiness and accident rates in bus drivers.

Materials and methods:

Drivers employed at bus depots within 30 miles of Edinburgh were given a sleep questionnaire. One thousand eight hundred fifty-four drivers were approached, and 677 (37%; 25 female) completed questionnaires with a 97% response rate among the 456 given directly to drivers by the researcher.

Results 

Of the responding drivers, 133 (20% of total, 19% of researcher-delivered questionnaires) reported an Epworth sleepiness score >10. Eight percent of drivers reported falling asleep at the wheel at least once/month, and 7% having an accident, and 18% a near-miss accident due to sleepiness while working.

Discussion:

This study shows a concerningly high rate of sleepiness and sleep-related accidents among bus drivers. Screening for OSAHS among commercial drivers needs to be seriously evaluated with some urgency.

 

Introduction:

Driving skill impairment from sleepiness can be greater than that from having a blood alcohol over the legal limit [1]. It is estimated that sleepiness causes 16% of all road traffic accidents (RTAs) and more than 20% of motorway crashes [2] and that between 50% and 29% of deaths and serious injuries in accidents are caused by sleep-related RTAs [1]. While most of these accidents are related to lack of sleep, many result from medical causes of sleepiness. The most common disorder causing excessive daytime sleepiness is the obstructive sleep apnea/hypopnea syndrome (OSAHS). Drivers with untreated OSAHS are at a high risk of sleep-related RTAs as the sedentary and monotonous nature of driving are conducive to sleepiness. OSAHS is much commoner in the obese [3] and those with sedentary occupations including professional drivers are at increased risk of obesity.

Thus, an excessive prevalence of OSAHS in professional bus and heavy-goods drivers has been suggested in some studies [4–6] but has not been assessed in the UK. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of sleep disorders symptoms, excessive daytime sleepiness, and accident rates in professional bus drivers in east central Scotland.

M. Vennelle : H. M. Engleman : N. J. Douglas

Department of Sleep Medicine, University of Edinburgh,

Edinburgh, UK

Department of Sleep Medicine, Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh,

51 Little France Crescent,

Edinburgh EH16 4SA, UK

e-mail: m.vennelle@ed.ac.uk