Abstract
We have previously demonstrated an abnormally delayed mean brake response time and
an increased frequency of abnormally delayed brake responses in a group of neuropathic
drivers with diabetes compared with a control group of drivers with neither diabetes
nor lower extremity neuropathy. The objective of the present case-control study was
to compare the mean brake response time between 2 groups of drivers with diabetes
with and without lower extremity sensorimotor neuropathy. The braking performances
of the participants were evaluated using a computerized driving simulator with specific
measurement of the mean brake response time and the frequency of the abnormally delayed
brake responses. We compared a control group of 25 active drivers with type 2 diabetes
without lower extremity neuropathy and an experimental group of 25 active drivers
with type 2 diabetes and lower extremity neuropathy from an urban U.S. podiatric medical
clinic. The experimental group demonstrated an 11.49% slower mean brake response time
(0.757 ± 0.180 versus 0.679 ± 0.120 second; p < .001), with abnormally delayed reactions occurring at a greater frequency (57.5%
versus 35.0%; p < .001). Independent of a comparative statistical analysis, diabetic drivers with
neuropathy demonstrated a mean brake response time slower than a suggested safety
threshold of 0.70 second, and diabetic drivers without neuropathy demonstrated a mean
brake response time faster than this threshold. The results of the present investigation
provide evidence that the specific onset of lower extremity sensorimotor neuropathy
associated with diabetes appears to impart a negative effect on automobile brake responses.
Level of Clinical Evidence
Keywords
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Article info
Footnotes
Financial Disclosure: None reported.
Conflict of Interest: None reported.
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