Long‐Term Effects of Driving Skill Training on Safe Driving in Older Adults with Mild Cognitive Impairment.

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVE: A driving skill program had positive effects on safe driving performance in older adults, even those with cognitive impairment. However, the long‐term effects of the program remain unclear. The purpose of this study was to examine whether such effects were maintained at 1 year after the intervention in older adults with cognitive impairment who had low driving skills. DESIGN: A secondary analysis of single‐blind randomized controlled trial. SETTING: Community setting in Japan. PARTICIPANTS: Community‐living adults, aged 65 years or older (n = 159), with mild cognitive impairment (MCI). INTERVENTION: The intervention group completed 10 classroom sessions of 1 hour and 10 on‐road sessions of 50 minutes, focusing on common problem areas of older drivers. The control group received one education class about safety driving. MEASUREMENTS: On‐road driving performance was assessed by certified driving school instructors in a driving school at preintervention and postintervention, and 1‐year follow‐up. RESULTS: A total of 159 community‐living older drivers participated in this study and were randomized to either an intervention group (n = 71) or a control group (n = 88). One year after the intervention, 104 of 159 community‐living older drivers completed the follow‐up assessment (intervention group, n = 58). Regarding the safe driving skill score, there was a significant group × time interaction (P <.01), indicating benefits of the intervention over time. Although the intervention group showed a significant decline in the safe driving skill score from postintervention (score = 38.9 ± 46.1) to 1‐year follow‐up (score = −0.3 ± 55.2), there was a significant difference between the groups at 1‐year follow‐up (control group score = −148.5 ± 46.4) (P <.05), and between preintervention (score = −132.0 ± 54.6) and 1‐year follow‐up in the intervention group (P <.05). CONCLUSION: The driving skill program maintained safe driving performance that had been improved by the intervention in older adults with MCI. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]