Relationship between neuropsychological tests and driver's license renewal tests in Parkinson's disease

Objective: To determine whether the standard Spanish driving test (ASDE test) was able to identify patients with Parkinson's disease (PD) at risk of unsafe driving and to examine the relationship between the ASDE test and the Useful Field of View (UFOV) as well as with a battery of neuropsychological tests in drivers with PD.

Methods: Thirty-seven patients with PD and 33 controls matched by age and education level were included in an observational study. All participants were active drivers and patients with PD underwent study procedures after taking the medication in the “on” period. Subjects with a Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) score ≤ 24 were excluded. Neuropsychological tests (Repeatable Battery for Neuropsychological Status [RBANS], Trail Making Test [TMT-A and -B], and Block Design test), driving performance tests (ASDE Driver Test and UFOV), and daytime sleepiness (Epworth Sleepiness Scale) were assessed.

Results: The PD group performed significantly worse than healthy controls in the ASDE Motor Coordination tests. No significant differences were observed in anticipation speed, multiple reaction time, concentrated attention, and resistance to monotony. All participants successfully completed the UFOV tests. Statistically significant differences between patients with PD and controls were found in processing speed (UFOV1; P =.03) and more patients with PD were found in the categories of higher driving risk levels (P =.03). In addition, patients with PD showed worse scores than healthy controls in visuospatial capacities (Line Orientation), psychomotor speed (Coding and TMT-A), memory (List Recognition, Story Recall), and executive function (TMT-B). The driving tests (ASDE and UFOV) showed a low sensitivity and a high specificity but a higher percentage of patients in the PD group failed in multiple reaction time, concentrated attention, and resistance to monotony. In addition, 18.9% of patients with PD showed a cutoff of 4 for UFOV risk. In the discriminant analysis, Line Orientation (visuospatial/constructive domain) and Figure Recall (delayed memory) were found to be statistically significant with a rate of correct classification of unsafe drivers with PD of 78.2%. In addition, normal results on the Line Orientation item were associated with a 1.5 times higher probability of non-risky driving in the multivariate analysis.

Conclusions: At early stages of the disease, about 19% of patients with PD showed difficulties that may affect their driving capabilities. Line Orientation and Figure Recall are useful to alert clinicians to the risk of unsafe driving. For this reason, patients with PD should be evaluated for driving abilities more regularly to determine the extent of deficits that may influence driving performance.     

驾驶人视觉注意力需求与驾驶行为特性的关系

采用驾驶模拟系统平台,以不同车道类型及不同交通流状态(自由流/稳定流/不稳定流/强制流)为虚拟试验场,应用心理试验设计方法,测试得到21名被试在不同交通流状态下的视觉注意力需求及驾驶行为。对5种车道类型及4种交通流状态下被试驾驶时的视觉注意力需求特性和驾驶行为特性数据进行分析,得到不同车道不同交通流状态下的视觉注意力需求变化情况。利用多元回归方法分析了不同交通流状态下驾驶人视觉注意力需求与驾驶行为之间的关系,并构建了基于驾驶行为特性的驾驶人视觉注意力需求预测模型。结果表明,驾驶人视觉注意力需求与制动次数、油门踏板位移和车辆轨迹偏差之间存在相关关系。     

Mediating effects of psychological safety in the relationship between team affectivity and transactive memory systems

In this research, we develop a framework for understanding the emergence of transactive memory systems (TMS) in project‐based teams characterized by different levels of group level positive affectivity (PA) and negative affectivity (NA). With a focus on enhancing understanding of the means of transmission, we test the mediating role played by group level psychological safety (PS) in the relationship between team affectivity and TMS. From a sample of 107 software implementation project teams, in a lagged field study, we find support for a mediated model in which high group NA, but not group PA, promotes environments psychologically unsafe for interpersonal risk‐taking (low PS) and which are negatively associated with TMS. This study extends prior research on the differential effects of PA and NA, by contributing to the limited research on group affectivity, environmental antecedents of TMS, and the mediating role of PS for predicting group level transactive processes and structures. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

高瓦斯易自燃工作面高抽巷瓦斯抽采与采空区遗煤自燃相互影响研究

为了实现瓦斯与煤自燃两大灾害的联合防治,首先对布置高抽巷条件下瓦斯与遗煤自燃多因素相互影响关系进行了理论分析和归纳总结。结合淮南潘二煤矿11223高瓦斯易自燃工作面,建立了带有高抽巷的物理模型,利用UDF编译了本煤层与邻近层瓦斯涌出源项、采空区三维孔隙率和低温条件下煤氧化反应氧气消耗速率。在此基础上,分析了高抽巷布置参数和抽采参数以及工作面风量对高抽巷瓦斯抽采效果和采空区自燃带分布相互影响的规律。结果表明,当工作面风量为2 000 m3/min,高抽巷布置在顶板上方40 m时,高抽巷瓦斯抽采浓度和纯量分别达32.3%和29.07 m3/min,占总瓦斯涌出量的69.71%,同时能满足实际防火的要求。研究结果可为类似条件下高抽巷最佳施工与抽采参数提供借鉴。