Advise for the DVLA medical

[03matchs]

Hi everyone,

Its nearly been five years since I was banned (im now 25.) At the time i was a student and made a very stupid mistake. I have to pass a DVLA medical prior to getting my license back and I have a few questions that maybe somebody could help me out with?

I am certainly not an alcoholic by any stretch of the imagination but I am a big bloke and do consider myself overweight. With it being xmas recently i have drank a bit but nothing excessive since the 28th of november last year. I have only had 3 drinks in total this year all in the first week of Jan on different days but nothing since. Obviously after being a student I have drank a lot in the past but never considered myself alcohol dependent. I have a blood test in September last year and my GGT was 169 which had fallen from a higher reading possibly due to sport supplements I take but who knows. After securing a new job and completing my MSc I would like to start the year by getting my license back too. I row 4 times a week and do weights and im currently trying to loose weight and eat a better diet. I take milk thistle tablets as ive read they can help.

My questions are:

Is there a time you have to not drink for to pass the medical?
What are the questions they ask at the medical?
Does a high GGT reading mean I will fail?

Any light that could be shed on them would be really great and also if you have any extra advise.

Thank you

 

[Forum Moderator]

Hi everyone,

Its nearly been five years since I was banned (im now 25.) At the time i was a student and made a very stupid mistake. I have to pass a DVLA medical prior to getting my license back and I have a few questions that maybe somebody could help me out with?

I am certainly not an alcoholic by any stretch of the imagination but I am a big bloke and do consider myself overweight. With it being xmas recently i have drank a bit but nothing excessive since the 28th of november last year. I have only had 3 drinks in total this year all in the first week of Jan on different days but nothing since. Obviously after being a student I have drank a lot in the past but never considered myself alcohol dependent. I have a blood test in September last year and my GGT was 169 which had fallen from a higher reading possibly due to sport supplements I take but who knows. After securing a new job and completing my MSc I would like to start the year by getting my license back too. I row 4 times a week and do weights and im currently trying to loose weight and eat a better diet. I take milk thistle tablets as ive read they can help.

My questions are:

Is there a time you have to not drink for to pass the medical?
What are the questions they ask at the medical?
Does a high GGT reading mean I will fail?

Any light that could be shed on them would be really great and also if you have any extra advise.

Thank you

The DVLA medical will include questions on your use of alcohol, how often you drink alcohol and the amount of alcohol you consume when you do drink alcohol etc. You will also be asked about any previous alcohol misuse and dependency issues you may have had and will be asked about any drug use.

The DVLA used to use liver function tests (LFT) which tested GGT, MCV and ALT biomarkers. They no longer test for GGT etc. They now use CDT testing which stands for Carbohydrate Deficient Transferrin. They operate a traffic light system which corresponds to your CDT levels, more information can be found here. Perhaps you should Google 'CDT testing' in order to find out more information on the subject.

CDT testing can detect recent alcohol misuse, if your CDT levels were elevated at a certain point in time, they should normalise after a few weeks of abstinence.

If you have no medical record of previous alcohol misuse and/or dependence and your CDT test results show a %CDT of less than 2.2% then you should have no problem passing the medical and regaining your driving licence.

You can view the 'At a glance guide to the current medical standards of fitness to drive' compiled by the DVLA here.

Good luck and let us know the outcome.

 

[03matchs]

Thank you very much!

Had a look at the
Links you posted and it's very informative! It's nice to know what to expect. Would it be worth going for a private CDT test? If so does anybody have any advise where I can get one of these done? (Live near york)

This forum has really helped a lot! Wish I would have seen it 5 years earlier! Would have made my time a lot easier!

Thanks
03matchs

 

[Queent68]

Hi,
Can I ask regarding this new CDT Test, if you have Macrocytosis, in my case it's caused by Anemia and not alcohol,I also have vitamin deficiencies, do the DVLA when this count shows up as high, which it will on my test, consult my GP? The reason I ask this as i was once banned, had licence back, then had to go for medical(I understand many fell through the courts on this and that is why i had my licence back for 3 years before I had my medical) . Although I abstained COMPLETELY from any alcohol . i failed my test 3 times, neither time was there any explanation all it said was I had to attend another, in the end, due to other ilnesses I didnt even bother and therefore they took my licence off me completely. Now though I am thinking of reapplying for it, I have chatted with my GP and he has said if they contact him, he will inform them as to my other medical conditions and why my reading would be high. I don't think back then the CDT test was in effect, not sure, however the thought of keep attending these does nothing but fill me with dread after my last experience.
Any advice welcome and appreciated
Thank you