Driving assessment in preclinical Alzheimer's disease: progress to date and the path forward

Abstract

Background: Changes in driving behaviour may start at the preclinical stage of Alzheimer's disease (AD), where the underlying AD biological process has begun in the presence of cognitive normality. Here, we summarize the emerging evidence suggesting that preclinical AD may impact everyday driving behaviour. MAIN: Increasing evidence links driving performance and behaviour with AD biomarkers in cognitively intact older adults. These studies have found subtle yet detectable differences in driving associated with AD biomarker status among cognitively intact older adults.

Conclusion: Recent studies suggest that changes in driving, a highly complex activity, are linked to, and can indicate the presence of, neuropathological AD. Future research must now examine the internal and external validity of driving for widespread use in identifying biological AD.

Keywords: Alzheimer’s disease; Automobile driving; Biomarker; GPS; Mobile technology; Naturalistic; Preclinical.