Natural Death at the Wheel

Abstract

Fifteen percent of the 1,026 drivers dying within 15 minutes of their single-vehicle accidents in California, 1963 through 1965, died of natural causes. Ninety-six percent were men with a mean age of 60 years. Ninety-four percent died of heart disease, primarily coronary artery disease. Of those dying of heart disease for whom past history is available, 40% were unaware of their heart condition. Eleven of the drivers had commercial operators' licenses and nine were driving large commercial vehicles at the time of their death. Because recognized natural deaths of drivers in accidents have not been included in traffic statistics, the extent of natural death at the wheel has been unknown. This special study illustrates the value of adequate postmortem examinations of drivers dying in traffic accidents, particularly men over 40 years of age; otherwise natural deaths can be missed.