Affiliations: [a] School of Psychological Sciences and the Turner Institute for Brain and Mental Health, Faculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences, Monash University, Clayton, Victoria, Australia
| [b] Calvary Health Care Bethlehem, State-wide Progressive Neurological Disease Service, Caulfield South, Victoria, Australia
Correspondence:
[*]
Correspondence to: Dr. Fiona Fisher, Calvary Health Care Bethlehem, Caulfield South, Victoria, 3162, Australia. Tel.: +61 3 9596 2853; E-mail: Fiona.Fisher@calvarycare.org.au.
Abstract: DriveSafe DriveAware (DSDA) is a cognitive screening tool assessing driving safety. Previously, we found DSDA categorised some HD participants as ‘likely to pass’ on-road assessments, despite displaying cognitive impairments in domains known to impact driving. As processing speed is affected early in HD, we examined whether DSDA completion time could provide supplementary cognitive information to support clinical decision-making. The HD group completed subtests significantly slower than controls, and completion times correlated with cognitive functions essential for driving. Considering DSDA completion time may tailor the assessment for people with HD so that it is more reflective of HD-related cognitive functioning.
Keywords: Huntington’s disease, automobile driving, cognitive dysfunction, reaction time
