title: Visuospatial and Attentional Abilities Predict Driving Simulator Performance Among Older HIV-infected Adults.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To examine the effects of aging and neuropsychological (NP) impairment on driving simulator performance within a human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-infected cohort.
  
  
  METHODS
  Participants included 79 HIV-infected adults (n = 58 > age 50, n = 21 ≤ 40) who completed a NP battery and a personnel computer-based driving simulator task. Outcome variables included total completion time (time) and number of city blocks to complete the task (blocks).
  
  
  RESULTS
  Compared to the younger group, the older group was less efficient in their route finding (blocks over optimum: 25.9 [20.1] vs 14.4 [16.9]; P = .02) and took longer to complete the task (time: 1297.6 [577.6] vs 804.4 [458.5] seconds; P = .001). Regression models within the older adult group indicated that visuospatial abilities (blocks: b = -0.40, P <.001; time: b = -0.40, P = .001) and attention (blocks: b = -0.49, P = .001; time: b = -0.42, P = .006) independently predicted simulator performance. The NP-impaired group performed more poorly on both time and blocks, compared to the NP normal group.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Older HIV-infected adults may be at risk of driving-related functional compromise secondary to HIV-associated neurocognitive decline.
authors: VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA. jessicafoley@gmail.com
authors: J M
authors: JM
authors: Foley
authors: A L
authors: AL
authors: Gooding
authors: A D
authors: AD
authors: Thames
authors: M L
authors: ML
authors: Ettenhofer
authors: M S
authors: MS
authors: Kim
authors: S A
authors: SA
authors: Castellon
authors: T D
authors: TD
authors: Marcotte
authors: J R
authors: JR
authors: Sadek
authors: R K
authors: RK
authors: Heaton
authors: W G
authors: WG
authors: van Gorp
authors: C H
authors: CH
authors: Hinkin
mesh_terms: D000063:Accidents, Traffic; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000375:Aging / Q000502:physiology / Q000523:psychology*; D001288:Attention / Q000502:physiology*; D001334:Automobile Driving / Q000523:psychology*; D015331:Cohort Studies; D003198:Computer Simulation; D005260:Female; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000523:psychology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests; D011597:Psychomotor Performance; D012044:Regression Analysis; D013028:Space Perception / Q000502:physiology*; D014796:Visual Perception / Q000502:physiology; D055815:Young Adult