Although driving may not seem like a particularly strenuous activity, it does require our full abilities and our total attention. This not only means avoiding distractions and combating fatigue, but some diseases can also affect our ability to drive.
As highlighted by the General Directorate of Traffic, to get behind the wheel safely, the driver needs minimum perceptual, cognitive and motor skills. “You need to perceive the stimuli (for example, a traffic light that is going to change to red or a pedestrian who is going to cross the road), process that information, decide the response you should give and give it appropriately and accurately handle the controls.” of the vehicle," explains the DGT, while warning that "the presence of diseases can alter this sequence."
Among the diseases that impair or prevent driving ability are some degenerative diseases – such as Parkinson's, dementia or Alzheimer's – as well as cardiovascular pathologies. In this case, we must pay attention not only to the condition itself, but also to the medication prescribed for its treatment.
The Mapfre Foundation has a guide on heart failure and its influence on driving, where they point out the main pathologies that affect the ability to drive. First of all, they point out heart failure, consisting of an imbalance between the heart's ability to pump blood and the body's needs.
Among the conditions associated with heart failure are high blood pressure, dyspnea or shortness of breath, difficulty breathing, feeling of tiredness, edema in the lower extremities, fatigue, syncope and mental confusion, all symptoms that hinder our full faculties when steering wheel. Furthermore, the medical treatment of heart failure consists of diuretics, inotropic drugs and vasodilators, whose side effects can prevent driving with manifestations such as arrhythmias, weakness, visual disorders, vertigo and hypotension, among others.
On the other hand, cor pulmonale pathology involves dilation or hypertrophy of the right ventricle of the heart, whose symptoms are dyspnea, cough, fatigue, foot edema and cyanosis, among other consequences. This can make driving difficult by reducing the concentration required behind the wheel. Cardiomyopathy and myocarditis also interfere with conduction capacity, as they can lead to intense arrhythmias and peripheral embolisms due to thrombi.
Thus, “the ability to drive depends on the alteration of cardiac function, the presence of arrhythmias and the risk of embolism,” the Mapfre Foundation insists. The specialist must review each case of risk, properly inform about the effects of the medication and warn about when driving is not recommended.
