The risk of crashes among older drivers is as high as among the very youngest drivers. Driving demands high cognitive functions. Sufficient cerebral capacity is essential; the occurrence of diseases affecting cerebral capacity is highly correlated with age. In order to find whether increased risk of crashes depends on normal ageing or on more frequent occurrence of disease with increasing age, all drivers over 65 in Sweden and Finland whose deaths are related to crashes are being investigated. The maximum number of neurotic plaques in the frontal and parietal brain areas was transformed into an age-related plaque score. On the basis of the information given by relatives, degree of dementia symptoms was estimated according to CDR scale. According to a neuropathological assessment, 70% of dead drivers under 75 had indications of Alzheimer's disease.
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