Cannabis and driving: A new perspective

Cannabis and driving is an emerging injury‐prevention concern. The incidence of driving while affected by cannabis is rising in parallel with increased cannabis use in the community. Younger drivers are at particular risk. Improvements in research methodology, technology and laboratory testing metho...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Emergency medicine (Fremantle, W.A.) W.A.), 2002-09, Vol.14 (3), p.296-303
Main Authors: O'Kane, Carl J, Tutt, Douglas C, Bauer, Lyndon A
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
accidents
Accidents, Traffic - statistics & numerical data
Australia
Automobile Driving
cannabis
Dronabinol - blood
drugs and driving
Humans
injured drivers
marijuana
Marijuana Smoking - adverse effects
Psychomotor Performance - drug effects
road trauma
THC
traffic safety
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Summary:Cannabis and driving is an emerging injury‐prevention concern. The incidence of driving while affected by cannabis is rising in parallel with increased cannabis use in the community. Younger drivers are at particular risk. Improvements in research methodology, technology and laboratory testing methods have occurred in the last 10 years. These cast doubt on earlier results and conclusions. Studies now show that cannabis has a significant impairing effect on driving when used alone and that this effect is exaggerated when combined with alcohol. Of particular concern is the presence of cannabis as the sole psychoactive drug in an increasing number of road fatalities and the lack of any structural response to this problem. A review of testing methods, laboratory and real driving studies, and recent epidemiological studies is presented. Suggestions for methods of further data collection and future public policy are made.
ISSN:1035-6851
1442-2026
DOI:10.1046/j.1442-2026.2002.00347.x