Relationship between traffic accident and snoring or daytime sleepiness of drivers

ObjectiveTo investigate the relationship bewteen traffic accident and snoring and day time sleepiness of drivers.MethodsThe questionnaires were randomly distributed to vehicle drivers at Yayuncun,Chaoyang district in Beijing between September 11 th and 15th 2009.ResultsTotally 1 002 responses were returned and 988 questionnaires were eligible.There were 133 persons with self-reported snoring with a snoring prevalence rate of 13.5%.There were 529 persons having Ep worth Sleepiness Scale(ESS)scores of >or=9(53.9%)and 346 persons reporting histories of accident (35.02%).The average frequency of accident in person with snoring and person without snoring was 1.11 and 0.62 times per person and the difference was statistically significant(P<0.01).The average frequency of accident increased with the growing of ESS score and years of snoring.ConclusionThe results indicate that the investigation andintervention among the drivers with snoring and day time sleepiness are needed for promotion of driving safety.