2010 BC Guide in Determining Fitness to Drive

Level ofImpairmentMildlyImpairedModeratelyImpairedSymptomsDyspnea whenwalking quickly onlevel ground or whenwalking uphill; abilityto keep pace withpeople of same ageand body buildwalking on levelground, but not onhills or stairs.Shortness of breathwhen walking for afew minutes or after100m walking onlevel groundPulmonary FunctionTesting 6 resultFVC > 60 to 70% ofpredicted, orFEV1 > 60 to 79% ofpredicted, orFEV1/FVC x 100 60 to74% orDLCOsb 60 to 79% ofpredicted.FVC 51 to 59% ofpredicted orFEV1 41 to 59% ofpredicted, orFEV1/FVC x 100 41 to59% orDLCOsb 41 to 59% ofpredicted.Nature of generalImpairmentUsually not correlatedwith diminished ability toperform most jobsProgressively lower levelsof lung functioncorrelated withdiminished ability to meetthe daily demands ofmany jobsSeverelyImpairedToo breathless toleave the house,breathless whendressing.The presence ofuntreated respiratoryfailure.FVC 50% or less ofpredicted orFEV1 40% or less ofpredicted, orFEV1/FVC x 100 >40% or less orDLCOsb > 40% or lessof predicted.Unable to meet thephysical demands of mostjobs, including travel towork15.2 Prevalence and incidence of chronic obstructive pulmonary diseaseEstimates from the World Health Organization indicate that 80 million people have moderate tosevere COPD. Chronic bronchitis affects individuals of all ages. Emphysema is more commonamong elderly individuals. In Canada men have a higher rate of COPD (6.3%) than women(5.2%). COPD increases in prevalence with age for both men and women with the highestprevalence for men over the age of 75 (9.1%).15.3 Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and adverse driving outcomesThere have been no studies that examine the relationship between respiratory diseases andadverse driving outcomes.139