The 75-year-old can no longer drive to visit his two youngest grandkids after he received a letter saying he was unfit to drive due to having an abdominal aortic aneurysm.

The aneurysms, which are balloon-like swellings of arteries, can cause sudden death if they burst, which is why people who have them require a 12-month conditional licence.

But if the aneurysms are under about five centimetres or are repaired, they pose no danger.

Mr Bounds, a retired widower who lives in Gosford on the NSW Central Coast, has one that has been repaired and assessed as safe by his specialist.

He said being told he was unable to drive despite this had left him feeling isolated, lonely and frustrated.

"The simplest things now become seriously complicated," he said.

"Socialising with friends ceases to happen; getting to watch grandchildren grow up is limited; picking up a coffee and talking to people at our local village shops, no more."

The Australian and New Zealand Society for Vascular Surgery has called for an urgent ministerial review of the national licensing guidelines.

Its president, Dr Bernie Bourke, said there were more than 18,000 Australians with repaired aneurysms who could be in the same position due to incorrect wording that stated they were unfit to drive.

He estimated up to a further 70,000 people with abdominal aortic aneurysms might one day be in the same situation.

"The problem is that people are having licences taken away because the licensing authorities are misinterpreting the ambiguous standards," said Dr Bourke, who is also Mr Bounds' specialist.

"To deny driving licences to these patients is as ludicrous as denying a patient who has had successful treatment of a fractured leg."

Dr Bourke said he had been told the National Transport Commission was investigating the issue, but he remained concerned as new guidelines were published on average only every four years.

The most recent guidelines, which inform state licence authorities such as VicRoads in Victoria and Roads and Maritime Services in NSW, were published in 2016.

He wants ministerial intervention to speed up the process.

"Patients are being unnecessarily and seriously inconvenienced," Dr Bourke said.

"These patients are often in the older age bracket but are perfectly fit to drive. They may live alone ... or they may have a spouse for whom they care."

A National Transport Commission spokesman said it had written to each state's licensing authority on Tuesday asking them to issue licences for drivers with repaired abdominal aortic aneurysms.

He said they were also seeking to change the guidelines in consultation with the vascular surgery society but it would need ministerial approval.

Meanwhile, Mr Bound is spending thousands on a lawyer to appeal the decision in June.

He said he was grateful for his mental strength but worried how others would cope in his situation.

"I can see how it would make you depressed," he said. "Other people might say, 'What's the point?' "

Transport Minister Darren Chester declined to comment.