Citation

Kraft M, Amick MM, Barth JT, French LM, Lew HL. Am. J. Phys. Med. Rehabil. 2010; 89(4): 336-344.

Affiliation

From the Polytrauma and Traumatic Brain Injury Center (MK, MMA, HLL), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, Massachusetts; Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Service (HLL), Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Boston Healthcare System, Boston, Massachusetts; Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Harvard Medical School (HLL), Boston, Massachusetts; Defense and Veterans Brain Injury Center (JTB, HLL), Virginia Neurocare, Charlottesville, Virginia; Lakeview Healthcare Systems (JTB), Charlottesville, Virginia; Division of Neuropsychology, University of Virginia Medical School (JTB), Charlottesville, Virginia; Defense and Veterans Brain Injury Center (LMF), Walter Reed Army Medical Center, Washington, District of Columbia; Department of Orthopedics and Rehabilitation (LMF), Walter Reed Army Medical Center, Washington, District of Columbia; and Department of Neurology (LMF), Uniformed Services University of Health Sciences, Bethesda, Maryland.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2010, Lippincott Williams and Wilkins)

DOI

10.1097/PHM.0b013e3181d3eb5f

PMID

20299851

Abstract

There is currently a pressing need for safe, reliable, cost-effective methods of evaluating driving ability. With recent improvements in virtual reality technology, driving simulators seem to offer a promising alternative to on-road methods of driving assessment. One population at risk for driving difficulties may be veterans returning from combat in Iraq or Afghanistan. The use of driving simulators to evaluate and remediate veterans' abilities to operate a motor vehicle is a rehabilitative goal. However, there are no consistent standardized procedures for determining safe from unsafe driving using driving simulators, which limit the clinical utility of this important tool. The purposes of this article are (1) to give the reader a better understanding of the parameters that are most commonly measured in the driving simulation literature and (2) to review parameters that are most relevant for the Operation Enduring Freedom/Operation Iraqi Freedom veteran population.

Language: en