Sleep deprivation hazardous for truck drivers

Chronic sleep deprivation and sleep-related breathing problems make truck drivers a hazard on roads. Obstructive sleep apnoea is a disorder in which the tissues at the back of the throat temporarily collapse, causing a brief pause in breathing until the brain arouses the person from deep sleep. This can happen dozens of times during the night, and often leads to poor sleep quality and daytime drowsiness. Researchers from the Center for Sleep and Respiratory Neurobiology at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia conducted a study on more than 400 commercial drivers. Twenty-eight percent of truck drivers were found to have at least mild sleep apnoea, with almost 5 percent having their breathing interrupted 30 or more times per night. It was this latter group that showed signs of excessive daytime sleepiness, being more likely than drivers without sleep apnoea to fall asleep within 5 minutes of hitting the pillow. Similarly, drivers who normally slept less than 5 hours per night were more likely to be exhausted during the day, and they performed more poorly on tests of alertness and reaction than their better-rested counterparts. This is important, because drowsy driving is a major cause of collisions involving commercial vehicles. The researchers believe that truckers should routinely be screened for sleep apnoea during their periodic medical evaluations. It's harder to determine whether drivers are just sleep-deprived, but they could be required to undergo tests like those used in the study to spot signs of impaired performance. It's also important to educate drivers, as well as their spouses, on the importance of sufficient sleep. People vary in how much sleep they need, to be alert during the day, and not every driver who clocked less than 5 hours per night was impaired on tests. But research shows that, on average, adults need about 8 hours sleep per night. The findings suggest that drivers need to be routinely screened for both sleep apnoea and for the impaired performance that can come with chronic sleep deprivation.