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Previous research has suggested an association between psychotropic drugs and traffic accidents. This Scottish case-crossover study analyzed data on drivers aged 18 and older who had a first accident between 1992 and 1995 and had a prescription for a tricyclic antidepressant, benzodiazepine, selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI), or other psychoactive drug between 1992 and the date of the accident.
Of the 19,386 drivers who had had an accident, 1,731 had used a psychoactive drug in the period leading up to the incident. Odds ratios for use of psychoactive drugs on the day of the accident were as follows: tricyclic antidepressants, 0.93; SSRIs, 0.85; benzodiazepines, 1.62; and other psychoactive drugs, 0.88. Among benzodiazepines, the…