Driving and aphasia after stroke.

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Authors: Helen E. Wallace, Hannah, L. Gullo, David A. Copland, Annette Rotherham and Sarah J. Wallace

Headshot of first author, Helen Wallace
Summary by: HWallace The author of this summary states they are an author on the original paper

What the researchers wanted to find out

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The researchers wanted to answer these questions:

Does aphasia make driving unsafe?

Is it harder to return to driving when you have aphasia?


Results of the research

Image of a room with people sitting at desks. There is a sign on the wall which says “driving tests.” Overlayed on this image are four icons: one showing listening; one showing speaking; one showing looking and one showing reading.

We do not know if aphasia affects driving safety.

There is very little research in this area.

Some people worry that aphasia may cause problems with:

  • Reading and understanding road signs
  • Talking to police and others in an emergency

Returning to driving can be difficult when you have aphasia.

  • Some people worry that aphasia may affect driving safety.
  • Health professionals and driving instructors may not know enough about aphasia.
  • You need to use your listening, understanding, reading and talking skills in the driving tests.

What type of research was done?

Image of 4 different international guidelines for returning to driving.

A review of research and international guidelines. 


Why the research was done

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In 2018, people with aphasia said help with return to driving after stroke was a Top 10 research priority.

We wanted to find out why people with aphasia may find it hard to get back to driving again after a stroke.


What does the research mean for me and others?

Image of a room with people sitting at desks. There is a sign on the wall which says “driving tests.” Overlayed on this image are four icons: one showing listening; one showing speaking; one showing looking and one showing reading.

We do not know if aphasia affects driving safety.

People with aphasia may have difficulty returning to driving.

Some driving tests that happen in the clinic are harder for people with aphasia.

  • Ask your healthcare provider for clear instructions.
  • Remind them that aphasia can affect how you perform in these tests.

What research methods were used?

Image of hands typing on a laptop, with information showing on the screen. There is a coffee and a notepad next to the laptop.

We completed a scoping review of research and international guidelines in this area.

This means we used a thorough search to find all the research and guidelines about this topic.

We looked for guidelines from countries where people speak English.


How to obtain the treatment detailed in the research

This research did not look at treatment.

If you want to return to driving after stroke, you need to talk to your GP or hospital doctor, or your occupational therapist.

You can ask your speech pathologist for help too.

Driving can also be an NDIS goal.


Background information on the research topic

Image with a clipboard and a magnifying glass and a piece of paper with “Top 10” written at the top and a list of text with tick boxes underneath.

In 2018, people with aphasia said help with return to driving after stroke was a Top 10 research priority.

We wanted to find out why people with aphasia may find it hard to get back to driving again after a stroke.

There is not much research or information about this area.


Risks related to the research

There were no risks doing this research.

We were just looking for information. 


Is the research trustworthy?

Yes.

There are strict rules to follow when you do a scoping review.

These rules make sure the results are trustworthy. 


Information about the people who took part

A team of 5 researchers worked on this review.


Who was allowed to take part in the research?

We didn’t have any participants in this study.

It was just the research team looking for information. 


Why was the research done this way?

We completed a scoping review to:

  • Make sure we found all the information.
  • Make sure our results are trustworthy.

When was the research done?

We completed our search in October 2019.

We checked for any updates or extra information in March 2022.


Problems with the research

We found that there was not a lot of information on this topic.

Some of the research in this area is very old.

So we don’t know what happens when people with aphasia want to drive again today.


Next steps

Image of a woman climbing up steps. The step at the top has a flag showing the end point.

We want to know:

  • What happens when people with aphasia want to drive again now.

We have talked to 15 people with aphasia about this. We will publish this paper soon.

  • What the healthcare team think about people with aphasia driving.

Where to find information related to the research

Image showing the logo for the Queensland Aphasia Research Centre, with a brain showing connections.

You will find information about this research in the full article.

We are doing this research at the Queensland Aphasia Research Centre.

You will find updates there.


Where was the research done?

Image showing the logo for the Queensland Aphasia Research Centre, with a brain showing connections.

This research was completed at the Queensland Aphasia Research Centre.


Where the money came from

Helen Wallace completed this research as part of her PhD.

She has an Australian Government Research Training Program Scholarship for her PhD.

Associate Professor Sarah Wallace has an Emerging Leadership Investigator Grant from the National Health and Medical Research Council. 




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